Bitter Sweet
by Sedaytion
Summary: Faith is a Realian with a deep, dark secret that resides in her innocent eyes. When the nineteen year old is freed of the pain of living with Albedo, her secret unlocks while in the care of her lover; Gaignun Kukai; a secret that can destroy everything.
1. Love Works In Strange Ways

**Bitter Sweet**

**Chapter One –**

**Love Works In Strange Ways**

"I didn't mean to, Sir, really-" her little voice wanted to say more, but all that came out afterwards was a small squeak as his sharp nails scratched her pale skin. He was bringing his strong, un-gloved fingers around her frail, child-like, neck. Wrapping them tightly around, she was prevented the pleasure of breathing. His hands were warm; his fingers were tight.

Panic struck her as she tried to bring air to her lungs. She brought her own fingers to his, trying to pry them open; she wanted air! She needed it! Others like her had died the same way, so what was preventing him from doing the same to her? Her eyes looked up, deep into his. His terrifying purple gems were glowing evilly; his lips curled upwards into a smirk, shaking as he tried not to laugh at her suffering.

Her fingers had given up on hope of pulling his away; they were turning limp like the rest of her body. Her lungs were hurting from the lack of air she was getting; her eyes were slowly closing as she realized her fate.

But then, his fingers suddenly loosened; in a split second his hand was back by his side and the sudden rush of air caused her to choke furiously. Before her mind had anytime to understand what was going on, why she was choking so much, he had hit her with such strength it pushed her down to the floor.

There was a chorus of pain as she felt her hip pop as it hit the hard floor. Her knee clicked, her elbow did too and her head banged against it painfully. Her chest had hit it too, making the choking much more painful for her. She lay there, unsure of what to do. She felt too weak to move, and she felt too frightened; would her white headed Master strike her again? Would he kill her?

He stared down at her, too angry to speak. As he turned to head for the door without a second glance to his beautiful Kirshwasser, he hit the wall. The sudden bang caused the girl to jump; her eyes widened in fear.

Her sight had gotten blurry as she tried to watch him leave. It took her a second to realize tears were streaming down her face at a fast pace, refusing to stop. The door slid open, and then swiftly closed as he left the room. A cough left her throat; she felt a warm liquid spray from her mouth. Rubbing her eyes so that her vision was clear, she could see her red blood sprayed on the floor. A little was on her lip, which she wiped away.

It was another day where she had done something on accident to anger her Master; something else that made him so angry with her that he beat her black and blue. Unlike the others, she wasn't destined to death. She was one that got to feel his 'love' for her all the time; the only one he didn't kill. He gave her enough pain to knock her out; to nearly kill her but never enough to actually do the job. If he was ever angry with her to the point he wanted her dead, he'd kill one of her sisters.

More blood ran down her lip, dripping to the floor in three large droplets.

'_Something to clean …'_ she thought to herself. _'I cannot let him see that I bled.'_

With soft fingers, she rubbed her damp bloodshot eyes, clearing her vision. She was dizzy and felt sick to the stomach. Her body ached, even though he hadn't pushed her to the ground that hard. Her cheek was sore too, from where he had hit her with his strong hands. With the little bit of energy she had left inside of her, she rolled over onto her hands and knees. Pain shot up her legs from the weight of her going onto her knees, making her gasp deeply. Still, she tried to ignore it, pretending there was no ache.

Weakly, she crawled to the corner of the darkened room, coughing loudly as she did so. The corner was where she felt safe from him and for her life. When she got there, she turned her back to lean on the cold wall that sent shivers up her spine. Like a neglected child, she brought her injured knees up to her chest, holding them close to her. Wrapping her arms around them, she hugged them tightly; her chin rested on her knees. Her eyes glazed foreword across the room. She noticed more blood stains on the ground of his bedroom.

'_More to clean.'_

Sighing deeply, she looked down at herself. Her eyes looked at her arms to examine her injuries more closely. Her elbows were red and sore; she knew that they would turn purple by the next day from bruising. A few scratches were here and there; nothing that bad. She brought her shaking hands to her face, looking at their damages.

Her index finger on her left hand had changed colour to a dark shade of purple; from the tip to the end. Her nail was chipped, caked in dry blood. She had sustained the injury the morning of the previous day. He had ordered her to get a gun for one of the guards on the ship. She obeyed, going down to collect one but she hadn't realized how badly they had been placed on the shelves. Her hip banged into the wooden shelf, knocking one down to meet with her finger.

Taking her mind from her finger, she looked at her light purple coloured knuckles and the scraps on her skin. So many injuries she had gained, she forgot the reasons for half of them. A deep sigh left her lips as she pulled herself tighter. If only she hadn't said the wrong thing, she wouldn't be in this situation; she would be …

She wasn't sure what she would be doing, but anything would be better then hiding in the corner of the room, waiting for him to return with more kicks and punches for her.

Tears had begun to stream down her face yet again. She buried her head into her hands, sobbing as quietly as she could: she couldn't afford for him to hear her sobbing.

'_Faith he doesn't do it on purpose,' _a voice in her head told her. _'He's just angry, don't worry about it girl. He loves you.'_

She sobbed louder at the horrible lies the voice was telling her.

'_He'll apologize.'_

That was it; her sobbing was too loud now. She tried closing her throat, stopping the horrible noise from escaping but it didn't work. She was panicking; if he caught her crying so much he'd beat her; he'd emotionally damage her. She wanted everything the voice was saying to be true, yet she knew it would never be that way, which caused more sobs and tears to leave her.

Biting down onto her hand, she screamed into her flesh. The pain needed to take her mind off it all; pain was the only way to get herself to stop crying. Though, at that point in time she was sure most of the tears were streaming down her face because of the flesh she was tearing. A metallic taste touched her tongue, causing her to flinch and pull her teeth away from her hand.

"Idiot …" she hissed, looking at her bloody hand. A line of red liquid ran down to her wrist, running part way around before dropping onto the ground.

She noticed a smudge of her blue lipstick had stained her dark skin. Frantically, she wiped it away with her finger.

Her sobbing had disappeared, her breathing was back to an even rhythm and her tears were slowing as they came down her face. She breathed out deeply, calming her heart then leaned the back of her head on the cold wall.

"What a day," she whispered, feeling her voice break. She tried to pull her smudged blue lips into a smile, but she couldn't hold it for long.

Faith looked up at the ceiling; letting a sigh leave her throat. It would be a long night with her white Master gone. He would probably be out for a few hours, trying to calm down and then he'd be back, furious with her for doing something wrong. She knew his patterns well: she knew when he'd be going, when he might come back and where he would be. Like at the moment she knew he would be on the bridge, probably playing a psychological game on someone. And obviously he would be winning.

Feeling slightly better then before, Faith pushed herself to her feet; using the wall as support. Her body was sore, but it felt better then it had done. Her eyes blurred for a second when she stood, but soon her sight was clear again. Some blood had dried around her lips; the blood on her hand was already drying on her skin and she knew she needed a shower. She felt so … dirty from being hit around by him so much.

Limping, she slowly made her way to the other side of his room. She noticed a few strands of silver hair on the ground, where he had pulled her hair from her. Ignoring it, she put her head to the large door, listening intently. For a few seconds she stayed like that, to make sure no one was around. She always felt … creped out by the guards and other people that lived on the ship with them. They had strange eyes that just looked: they looked and stared, contemplating something. Their eyes laughed at her, laughed at all the pain she was forced to endure. Laughed at how many of her sisters had died.

Knowing it was clear; she turned around and limped to another door. She held her arms close to her chest, feeling slightly anxious as the door slid open for her. The bathroom was dark but was soon put in light when she stepped inside.

It was a beautiful room, with two large, expensive mirrors on two walls, a large shower was in the right corner, a toilet opposite and running across the right wall was a large, white bath. She shut the door behind herself, locking it firmly as she did so. She turned the taps on for a soothing bath that she craved. As she waited for the warm water to fill the tub, she walked to the sink, where a mirror was being held above it.

Her hands ran through her silver hair that stopped at the centre of her back. A little angry expression came to her, and she pulled the silver hair away, revealing that it was only a wig. She threw the silver wig onto the floor in anger, hesitating to look back at the mirror.

Under the wig was her normal hair. It was shoulder length, as straight-as-a-pin. It was messy in some places, spiking out here and there; her bangs brushed across her forehead, starting off short then going longer until they blended in with the rest of her hair. Her hair was a beautiful pastel pink shade, with dark red highlights going through it. Her fingers ran through her soft hair; a tear ran down her cheek.

"Faith …" she whispered, looking at the rest of herself.

Her eyes were gold, just like other like her. That was the only thing that made her look like her sisters: her golden eyes. Her skin was a lighter shade then theirs, her hair was completely different and her height was a little bit taller then theirs. Her Master made her wear the wig, so that she would look like them. She didn't understand why though. He even gave her a uniform like theirs but a different colour. Instead of the blues, whites and silvers they wore, she was forced to wear greens, blacks and some blue.

A few more tears ran down her face. Her eyes returned to her reflection, seeing how bloodshot her gems really were. She looked sickly, as usual, which disgusted her.

"God, Faith," she hissed at herself. She put her hands on the sink, leaning foreword. "Why can't you be strong?"

She stood there for a few moments, before collecting more energy to get undressed. She dumped her cloths in the middle of the bathroom, happy to have shed them from her skin. Turning off the tap, she put her body into the warm water. It stung some of her cuts, making her gasp slightly but she ignored the pain, making herself relax.

The water felt good against her skin. She washed herself thoroughly, letting her skin and hair become all soapy. Aching was slowly becoming part of the past the longer she stayed soaking in the water.

After a few moments there was a sudden banging at the door, causing Faith to skittishly flinch. She froze, feeling the water brushing up and down against her skin. _"Damn …"_

"Is that you in there, Faith?" his deep voice asked. It was muffled, but still just as frightening.

"Y-yes Sir," she answered, her voice shaking with her fear.

"There's a doll here, wishing to see you," he said, anger in his tone. "But as you're busy at the moment, I'll occupy her while she waits."

"No, leave her be!" Faith cried, suddenly standing up. Water sprayed down from her, running down her silky skin. Not caring about how wet she would get the floor, she stepped out of the bath.

"Have you been bleeding, Faith?"

Frozen, she felt her heart skip a beat. She felt the water dripping from her quickly; her body was beginning to feel cold. He repeated her name, yet she had no answer. Her mouth was open and she began to fear the worse.

"Carry on with your bath, Faith," he sourly said. She frowned; he was planning something, but what she didn't know. "Don't worry about it."

"Sir?"

"Dolls need to be clean too," he said, his voice much quieter. He was moving away from the door.

Faith returned to the bath, nodding ever so slightly. "Yes sir," she said, unwilling to argue wit him. In the morning she probably would, but her body was too sore at the moment: she didn't want to have another beating straight after having one.

It didn't take long until she had finished and was drying her soft skin with the towel. She emptied the bath, sliding her usual cloths back onto her skin. She shut her eyes painfully as the uniform returned to her, making her feel like nothing more then a doll he wished for her to be. Although she put on the uniform, she left the wig sitting on its own by the sink; refusing to place it on her head. She didn't want to be another Kirshwasser; just for one night she wanted to be _Faith_.

Breathing out, she pushed the button for the door to open. As it did her eyes met with a horrifying sight, causing her to step back and scream in repulsion mixed with terror. Her sister was lying limp on the floor, her beautiful skin covered in ruby red blood; her cloths torn and her hair was a mess. Her gold eyes were open, yet they showed no life in them. Her hand was out, as if she had been reaching for someone.

Faith's hands trembled: it was Faith; her sister was reaching out for her. Her sister wanted her to save her from that man.

"You bastard!" she screamed at the top of her lungs.

Quickly, she ran out of the bathroom, ready to face her Master; her eyes were showing fear, though her hands were clenched in anger. Her entire body was shaking immensely and she wasn't sure herself whether it was from fear or from anger towards him for destroying the life of her sister.

Albedo was sat on his bed, a calm expression on his face as if he had done nothing wrong. In his arms, he was cradling another Kirshwasser; another one of her sisters, but this one looked quite content being in his arms. There was a small smile on her face; her eyes refused to look away from his, even with Faith being in the room.

"Why the hell did you do that?" she screeched.

"Oh Faith, dear," he laughed, keeping his eyes on the kirshwasser. "You know there are hundreds of them left. One is made everyday, what's the trouble in wasting some of them?"

He suddenly snapped the neck of the one he held, killing her instantly. Faith froze in horror, watching as he dropped her limp sister to the ground. She landed near Faith's feet, causing her to step backwards. Her shaking hands came to her mouth, stopping herself from screaming. She was sure of it: she was frightened of the madman in front of her. Ice fear crawled up her spine, causing her to shiver.

Albedo's eyes looked up at her. He frowned; leaning his head closer. "Hmm?" he blinked a few times, his eyes set curiously on her hair. "You know I do not care much for these pink locks, don't you?"

"I …" her throat was so dry she couldn't speak. She managed to bring her hand to her hair, twisting it softly.

He stepped off the bed, coming close to her. She hunched her shoulders dejectedly, forcing her eyes to look away from him. Like a small child, she found herself shaking as her tall Master looked down at her; his purple eyes glowing in a way to show danger.

He put a gloved finger on her chin, forcing her head to look up at him. He smiled, feeding on the fear that was emitting from her skin; her eyes. He enjoyed the fear so much he held lightly onto her shaking hand, absorbing the tremble. "Ahhh such a wonderful emotion …" he whispered, closing his eyes to savour the moment, even though he knew it would be easy to get the emotion back into her blood.

Faith frowned a little, trying to move back. "Please, Sir, let me go. I'll put the wig on if you wish."

"I suppose …" he said, re-opening his eyes. "That you may have your hair like this for now."

Faith raised a brow, but nodded. "Thank you, Sir."

"Now clean up!" he snapped, slapping her head so hard a shriek left her lips. She held her head as he yelled, holding back tears. "Do you really think I want such disgusting fluid on my floor?"

"No sir," she quickly said, shaking her head.

"You shouldn't even have any," he said, poking her nose. He gave her a small smile. "You're just a toy, after all, aren't you?"

Staring at his thin finger, she stayed silent; eyes open wide.

"Aren't you?" he repeated, louder then before. His bellow caused her to jump followed by a quick shake of her head.

"I'm not a doll," she quietly countered. Her voice was breaking, though she tried to stay strong.

"Really?" he asked.

Suddenly, he grabbed her arm, pulling her body against his. Before she had a chance to do or say anything, his lips had covered hers. She tried to pull away but one hand was placed firmly at her neck; the other held her arms together. Her fists clenched as his tongue came into her mouth. _'Stop it, stop it …'_

He smiled as she tried to pull away, refusing to let her tongue touch his. After a few moments he let go of her; his hands released their grip and in seconds she had made it to the other side of the room. She spat on the ground, his unwanted saliva left her mouth. Her body was hunched, she felt as if she was going to be sick; her eyes looked at Albedo, who was standing with the usual menace smile on his face.

"Strange," he said, licking his lips. "You certainly taste like them."

"We eat and drink the same stuff. We use the same toothpaste," she hissed, leaning a hand on the wall. "Your experiment failed."

"Oh?" he smirked, stepping foreword. "Your mouth isn't the only place I can taste …"

"You wouldn't dare," Faith said, moving backwards. She inched her way closer to the door, her heart pounding quicker then ever before. Her body felt exposed to the madman, and she feared he would do the one thing he hadn't done to her that he did to her sisters.

He moved closer, and then flicked her nose. "Go clear up." He smirked. "Otherwise I really will do that to you," he stroked her face. "Such a beautiful doll you are, I'm surprised I haven't already."

"Keep your hands off me," she glared, pushing the button to open the door. "And keep your sour tongue to yourself."

With swift feet, she left the room, hearing the door slam behind her. She sighed deeply, leaning her back on the wall. She felt a small sense of relief being out of the room; it was … amazing. Now, if only she could make it to the storage room without the guards giving her those horribly dirty looks. They were horrible people those guards were: like everyone else on the ship. She hated being near anyone apart from her sisters: her sisters were the only people that didn't want to hurt her, but as the days went on there were getting less and less of them.


	2. The Brother

**Chapter Two –**

**The Brother**

Awakening the next morning, Faith found her body wrapped up in the same, dark purple sheets; her skin almost bare apart from the pair of white shorts and small pink top she wore. Groggy, she moaned a little as she awoke: the aches and pains were becoming evident from the previous nights beating. Her body was stiff as she stirred; her mind collecting the thoughts and feelings she had fallen asleep with. Before sleeping she remembered clearing up her blood for Albedo, her Master. She remembered taking her sisters away, to be … she swallowed a lump in her throat.

They had been taken to be disposed of. And whilst she was carrying the bloody one, the one who had been reaching out for her, she realized not only had she suffered a brutal death, but being as sick and cruel as Master was; he had raped the poor child.

Lying in the same bed as him, with his body inches from her own terrified Faith's soul to the very core. She wondered for a second how she had managed to fall asleep with him close, though it had been just for a few mere hours. Her eyes looked at the clock on the side of the bed, ticking away.

It was six o'clock in the morning, and even Master wouldn't be awake. Rolling over as silently and motionlessly as she could as to not wake him, she set her eyes on his body.

He lay like an angel: his skin smooth and pale; his hair luminous white, something as pure as snow. His eyes were closed gently, his lips curled into a small smile (what he could've been smiling at would've taken away the entire sense of him looking peaceful and angelic). His chest was bare; she watched as it rose and fell with his gentle breaths. White hair covered parts of his face. She found herself brushing his hair away, touching him with her soft fingers.

Suddenly, she flinched away. What the hell was she doing? _Touching_ _Albedo_?! Was she for real?

'_Either he'll awake and be annoyed with me,'_ she thought, scolding herself. _'Or he'll get the wrong idea and he'll …'_

She shuddered at the thought of his hot body lying above hers; his hands touching her in places no one else had. _'Sick!'_

Her hands covered her eyes as she quickly rolled away from him, trying to get that horrible thought from her head. She glanced at the clock again, wondering when she would be able to get up. She needed to keep herself occupied; otherwise the fear inside of her would eat her away. Besides, she wanted to get out of the bed as fast as she could: away from her sisters murders, and who would probably soon be her own murderer. Unlike the others, Faith was smart enough to understand that their 'Master' was their murderer; only there to kill them.

Slowly, she put her legs out of the sheets. Uncovered, she was able to see how many bruises were on her skin; mostly on her knees. They were purple and discoloured, sore to the touch. She sighed deeply, stopping herself from crying.

Scooping her legs over the bed, she stood up. Her legs almost gave way under her. Somehow, she had managed to stop herself from shrieking out from the pain that shot up her legs.

'_Good girl, Faith,'_ she told herself. _'The pain will go away soon, don't worry.'_

Faith always thought she should've been grateful: a little voice in her head always told her so. She was one of the lucky Realians: one that was close to being the 'perfect' Realian. She was so close; Faith almost resembled her human sister if it hadn't been for her hair, height and skin shade. But other then that, Faith's features were like those of Sakura: she was so close.

But then she spoke. Her voice, her attitude and her personality disgusted her father. Often she found herself having verbal abuse from her father. He hated her to the point he refused to give her away to Vector, like some of her sisters went to. He wanted her to suffer; he more then hated her. In the eyes of her father, she was the worse creation he had ever made; she was even more worthless then her sisters that didn't have a pure mind like her own.

Luckily, her white headed Master found her. She couldn't remember how, and he probably couldn't either. In his eyes she was just like another doll, yet he took her in, caring for her. He kept her heart pounding, he kept her stomach full and he kept her clothed. He even kept her occupied with little games and other things like that she was interested in.

So why wasn't she appreciative?

The fact she saw him beat, kill and rape her sisters daily was part of it. At the beginning she found it hard to keep her mouth shut; she yelled, she kicked, she bit and she scratched. She did all she could, letting her Master know how angry she was with him but then he retaliated. He punched, he kicked and he sent tons of verbal abuse to her. He frightened her to the point she thought she was going to die from a heart attack. She should've been grateful he didn't kill her – that should've pleased her.

But she found it impossible to thank him for anything. Being with him was just like being in hell.

The only reason he kept her was because she shed tears: she cried and she fought. She was interesting to him; she was like a doll but with all sorts of nifty little things that came with it.

"Where are you going?" a groggy voice behind her asked, making her thoughts loose their trail.

Faith turned, looking down to him. His eyes were half open, half close; his head didn't lift above the pillow it rested peacefully on.

"I woke up so …" she wasn't really sure where she was going. "I thought I would get ready."

"Remember the wig," he sleepily said. "I'd like you to pay a visit to my dear Rubedo."

Rubedo, Rubedo … her brain searched for the name. Albedo, Rubedo and Nigredo: white, red and black. Like the speed of light, the memory came into her mind. Rubedo was Albedo's twin.

"I don't really need to wear the wig, do I Sir?" she asked, sliding her cloths off her body. She couldn't care less if he saw her only in her underwear; he'd seen it enough anyway.

"Yes you do," he said, his eyes opened properly when he watched her changing. "And why might you be dressing in front of my eyes, Faith?"

"Am I really that repulsive?" she snapped, shedding her shorts and top that were soon replaced by her green, uniformed dress.

She pulled a pair of black tights up her legs as she waited his reply in silence. Straightening out her cloths, she moved to place a pair of green boots on her feet then she grabbed her mint green and black gloves from the side. The bruises and cuts were soon covered by the fabric, and then her hands hesitated over the silver wig.

Gritting her teeth, she slid it over her natural pink and red hair, feeling officially like one of her sisters. She was a Kirshwasser.

"Good girl," he said. "You look divine."

"I look like nothing," she hissed. "I feel like an ugly Barbie Doll."

"A Barbie doll?" he echoed.

"I feel like a doll, full stop," she snapped.

She brushed the silver bangs from her face, going into the bathroom to wash up. The day was going to be long, but with Rubedo it meant no beatings.

But there was always something sinister she was forced to do whenever in his presence for Master.

* * *

"Speak nothing," he told her, slapping her head. Faith jumped at his sudden hit. "Nigredo will take pity on you."

Faith gritted her teeth, preventing herself from saying something she might regret. She had never met Nigredo before; she heard of him during Albedo's angry tantrums, but never had she seen the man herself. Sitting in the E.S machine, she smoothly glided it through space, heading towards the Kukai Foundation, where she would be dropped off by Albedo.

It was a simple mission that should last a mere twenty-four hours, which didn't feel like enough time to get away from him. She was being forced to gain information about the 100 series Realian, called M.O.M.O: Faith's sister. The one she hated …

The one who stole her place and made her live with her Master.

Momo didn't know it, but if she wasn't born then maybe the Kirshwasser's would've been loved by their father. He wouldn't have been distracted by Miss 'Perfect 100 Series'.

"_Nigredo!" _Albedo's voice caused Faith to jump and turn around. He was speaking to his brother telepathically, yet he still spoke aloud.

'_Albedo?'_ Nigredo replied; Faith unable to hear him. _'What a surprise it is to hear you. Too bad I cannot say it is a good thing.'_

"_Oh Nigredo, still as stale as ever I see!"_ Albedo laughed manically again. His laugh sent shivers down Faith's spine.

'_Did you want something, Albedo?'_ Nigredo asked. _'Or did you just wish to waste my time with your pointless speeches?'_

"_Calm down, executioner,"_ he laughed. _"I have a little gift for you here … a little one of my dolls."_

'_A Kirshwasser?' _Nigredo said, with some shock in his voice. _'We have enough Realians, we don't need anymore. I'm surprised you're giving your toys away.'_

"_Ah, you don't understand, Nigredo,"_ he said. _"She's been badly injured and needs help. Don't leave her to die; surely your better then that."_

Faith froze. She'd have to pretend to be injured? No, Albedo would have a much sinister plan for her …

After the pause, he replied. _'Bring her to the Durandle at the Foundation. Though I'm sure your already here, aren't you Albedo?'_

"_Haha, how did you guess?" _he laughed. _"Such a kind decision, executioner."_

Before Nigredo had a chance to reply, Albedo broke the mental link. He looked down at Faith, a smirk plastered on his face. His eyes glowed with that horrible glow; something that warned her.

"Oh Faith, dear," he said. Faith wriggled back, knowing what to expect.

There was a sudden shooting pain in her head. Before she had a chance to understand fully what Albedo had done to damage her, the world went black as if she fell asleep.

* * *

"_Heart rate stabilizing,"_

"_What a bastard …"_

"_Inserting injection,"_

"_I can't believe he did this to her,"_

"_Nano Technology used: wound healing,"_

"_She's just an innocent Realian, but something's … strange …"_

"_99 Series stabilized. Would you like some time alone?"_

"_Please."_

* * *

Faith stirred restlessly as she began to awake. Her head felt sore, her mind was confused. Where was she? What had happened? What damage had Master done to her this time? And was it enough to permanently harm her?

Before her eyes had even opened, her ears were greeted with a deep voice by her ear; deep like Master's, just much more calming and soothing. "Relax, relax, you're okay here."

Her breathing was short, she noticed that. Had she been moving around a lot? Perhaps screaming and kicking? Opening her eyes slowly, she found her sight was slightly blurred. Her sore hands came to rub them, getting her sight normal. Her body felt numb, but a part of her forehead was throbbing like hell.

Her eyes searched for a moment; she collected information. It seemed she was lying in a hospital bed; the room was white and the breathing of a ventilator machine could be heard beside of her, telling her she was alive. As her hand came back down to her side, to rest on the white mattress she noticed a tube coming out of her vein, attaching to some machine.

Then she noticed the tall, slim figure standing beside her bed, leaning over her. His hair was jet black; his eyes were a beautiful emerald shade, showing hints of concern to her. He wore a smart suit, showing how he was important in something.

Faith opened her mouth to speak, but her throat was too dry to even let her voice break out. After a moment she realized that was a good thing: Master had told her to speak nothing. This man must have been friends with Nigredo, or some colleague of his: she had to keep her mouth shut.

"Don't worry, you're safe here," he told her with assurance in his tone. "Do you have a name, little one?"

_Name?_ People actually cared that a simple Realian like her had a name? Even Master hadn't cared she had a name at the beginning of their 'relationship' (if that was what it was to be called). Even daddy didn't use her name, but this man wished for it?

It was something so extraordinary for Faith to answer, she couldn't help but speak. Her voice was breaking as she spoke, showing how dry her throat was. "_Faith,_" she paused to take a deep breath. "_Sir."_

Faith began to push herself to sit up, with the aid of the stranger beside her. He pulled the pillows up higher, for her back to rest on. His hand brushed some of her hair from her face, and she couldn't help but look at him cautiously. He was touching her, helping her. Did he not know that she was a Realian and not some girl? The only time she got treated in a humane way was with Albedo, and that was before he beat her. She couldn't help but be a little fearful of the black headed man.

It seemed he picked up on her fear somehow as he moved his hand away and spoke with another assuring tone. "There's no need to be so frightened; there's nothing for you to fear here."

Faith stared into his eyes, still not removing the emotion. A sigh escaped his lips.

"My name is Gainun Kukai," he introduced. "Are you feeling alright?"

Faith gave a slight nod. Her eyes connected with his; they emitted an emotion of curiosity that hopefully he would pick up on. After a few moments he smirked, then began to speak again.

"There aren't many Realians with emotions as strong as yours," he said, raising a brow. She stayed silent and he sighed. "Not one to talk much though, are you?"

Faith turned her head away from him, frightened he would read into her memories and thoughts as well as her emotions. He was a strange man; so very, very strange. She stayed with her head turned to him for a few long, overdrawing moments of silence then her mouth opened. She breathed deeply, shutting her eyes as she spoke as if it were a difficult task.

"Did he nearly kill me?" she managed to ask, unsure of whether she wished for the answer.

Gainun paused. He knew of Albedo's connections to the Kirshwasser's that followed him around constantly. He understood the strange bond they had with him, their everlasting love towards the madmen that mutilated them, raped them and emotionally traumatized them. Though he knew Faith, this Realian, was much different to the others he was unsure of whether to tell her the truth or not. But … did she love him like the others? Was that the reason Albedo had dumped her in his hands, because he wished not to have a Realian that wouldn't show any compassion towards him? Or was it because of her energy?

When they had been given her she was barely conscious yet was kicking them away; screaming loudly. She could've been a nuisance to Albedo, so that was probably the reason he left her. The reason he had battered her so badly, but why hadn't he killed her? Gainun knew it wasn't because of the timing that they got to her; they had nothing to do with it. Albedo had planned it out carefully; he had known when to deliver the devastating blow to her forehead at the precise time so that she wouldn't bleed out to death. He knew every single step. Surely Faith wasn't like the other Kirshwasser's.

"Did he nearly kill me?" she repeated, tearing Gainun from his thoughts.

"There was extreme head trauma," he slowly said, outlining a large mark on her forehead under her fringe.

His fingers touching her skin caused her to flinch, but she tried to act emotionless: she tried to pretend she couldn't feel his touch.

"An incision was across your forehead," he said. She tried to hold a frown: he was sounding like a detective describing the reason for death of a victim. "You were already unconscious when we got to you; the blood was leaving you at a rapid rate."

The thoughts of her sister that brutally died the previous night entered her mind. _"Shut up, shut up, shut up."_

"We had to inject you with a sedative as you were awakening," he continued. "Then we used the Nano Technology on you, to heal your wound."

"At what time was this?" Faith asked emotionlessly. She stared at Gainun with dull gold eyes.

"Ten this morning," he replied. "Three hours ago."

She nodded. "Right," she said, still with no emotion.

"You're not like the others, are you?" he asked, leaning close to her, hoping she would reveal a secret.

"I'm a 99 Series Observational Realian," she said. "When you say 'others', I do believe I am different to the models onboard of this vessel. So, no I am not like the others, Sir."

"99 Series?" he repeated, leaning back. "I never realized the 99 Series came with names of their own."

"Please, Sir, do not speak to me like that," she said, feeling her emotions showing. "We're not machines. We have names, thoughts and feelings."

"Yes, I do apologize," he said. "I understand I was at fault there, but Faith?"

"Sir?" she raised a brow.

"Why did Albedo leave you here?" he asked.

Faith froze, unsure of what reply wouldn't blow her cover. She swallowed, making her voice say something: anything. The silence was ripping away her cover as it went on.

"I am truthfully unsure, Sir," she replied. "Master wishes not to unveil all his plans with us."

"Plans?" he repeated.

"No, I mean, I," she felt her hands trembling; her voice was becoming filled with emotion again. She shook her head, noticing the silver locks: she looked like one of them; good.

Gainun moved so that he could sit on the bed. He knew the conversation with this … 'Realian' was going to go on for quite awhile, so why not make himself comfy? He could ask her all the questions he wished to; she wasn't going anywhere in a hurry.

"Mr Kukai, Sir, would you mind leaving me be?" she asked, looking into his eyes. She showed a dangerous amount of pleading that he quickly noticed. "I wish to have a moment to rest, if you do not mind."

"You can rest while I'm here, can't you?" he asked. He knew there was something different: he knew something was up with her. He brushed some of her hair from her face with his right hand. As he brought his hand away, his palm opened revealing a number in the colour of blood red.

_669._

Faith froze, her eyes transfixed on his hand, though it had closed. Gainun's gaze followed her own, meeting with his hand. He looked back at her, though her eyes hadn't moved. "Faith?"

_Nigredo._

"Might you know of the whereabouts of the 100 Series?" speaking of her name caused a bolt of anger to emerge in her stomach. Daddy's best. _'The bitch that put us all through pain.'_

"The 100 series?" he echoed with suspicion. "What do you want with her?"

"_Her …"_ she clenched her fists. She was always treated like a Goddamn human unlike Faith and the Kirshwasser's. She felt angry spilling into her veins: she wanted to hurt that Realian she despised so much. As cruel as it was, Faith wanted to hear her scream. She wanted her blood to empty from her body. She wished that Realian, Momo, would feel each and every pain her sisters had to feel: she wished for her to feel what they had felt. And she wished to be the one to cause the pain to her. She wanted to be the 100 Series' Executioner.

"Faith!" Gainun's sudden yell pulled her out of her murderous thoughts.

She looked to him; his emerald eyes wide in shock but she couldn't understand why. His hands were on hers, which were clenched tightly. "You're hurting yourself!"

The instant he had said that, a stinging pain could be felt at her palms. She looked down to her own hands, loosening her fingers. She felt her long nails were jammed in her flesh; the blood was seeping from the tips of her fingers. Her blue nails were stained with her red blood. Slowly, gasping as she did, she tore her nails out from her flesh, letting her see the four cuts on each palm, soaking with her blood. Innocently, she looked up to Gainun who was standing to his feet.

He was bringing bandages from the side table, but she didn't care for them. As he sat down, wrapping her palms up, her eyes gazed on the jug of water that sat on the table, near where the bandages had been. She licked her dry lips, only just realizing how thirsty she really was. Her throat was dying for the water; she hadn't drunk all day and she was beginning to feel it. Though it had been twenty four hours since she had water sliding down her throat, it felt like a days.

"What?" Gainun asked, tearing her bandages when he had done. He secured them around her hands (though he was no doctor, he did a pretty damn good job) then followed her eyes with his. It took him a few moments to realize what she wanted. "You're thirsty?"

She nodded, giving him a small 'Sir'.

He smirked, standing up again. He poured the ice cold water into a cup, handing it to Faith. Her hands were shaky and slightly weak. He ended up holding the cup with his hand, whilst she held it with her fingers. Slowly, he brought the rim to her lips; he supported the glass as she swallowed the cold water.

"Better?" he asked after she had left the glass half full.

"Mmm," she smiled, letting go of the cup. He put it back onto the table as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. "Thank you."

The door suddenly slid in, running into the room was a redheaded boy. The sudden visitor caused Faith to jump out of her skin. A small smile was spread across his face when his blue eyes met with Gainun. As he spoke, his voice was filled with excitement.

"Gainun, there you are!" he said. He moved into the room at a fast pace, oblivious to Faith. The door slid behind him.

"Jr? What are you doing here?" he asked, turning around to face him properly.

"I've been trying to find you …" his voice faded as his eyes came into contact with Faith.

He seemed to have been frozen for an instant as he stared at the small girl. He took in her gold eyes, pale skin and silver, flat hair. Her sickly face looked up at him; her eyes looked slightly tired to him and for a split second he felt sorry for her then, his emotion changed. She could see it in his eyes.

"What is a Kirshwasser doing here?!" he gasped, leaning his head forehead. "It is one, isn't it? Not one of ours? Albedo?"

"I'm not an _it_," Faith hissed, clutching the covers. "How might you feel if I came running in, referring to you as it?"

Gainun turned to her, frowning at her outburst that seemed not to have finished.

"I'm sick of people talking down to me like I am a doll," she said, trying to keep her voice even. She wouldn't let herself yell, as much as she desired to. "My name is Faith and I have a mind, okay?!"

Jr held his hands up in defence, stepping to the side. "Alright, alright. Calm down, Faith. I'm sorry."

"You're quite individual for a 99 series," Gainun quietly commented.

Faith looked into his eyes that seemed to have flashed. _'He knows …'_ she thought. _'He knows there's something different. Does he know about Father?'_

"What happened to you, Faith?" Jr asked, moving to be on the side of Gainun. "Were you the one dropped off here by Albedo?"

Breathing out deeply, she forced all her emotions into a bottle; firmly sealing it shut. With a blank baby like expression, she looked up at Jr. _'Keep your mouth shut, keep your eyes plain. It doesn't matter about Gainun, but you cannot have Jr suspecting you. Master will be most displeased.'_

"Is she okay?" Jr asked, looking deep into Faith's emotionless eyes.

"I believe so," Gainun said, standing up. "She is only a 99 Series, Jr. She cannot communicate well with us. She might not even understand what you're saying."

"But she just …" he shook his head, confused. Gainun shrugged.

"Perhaps Albedo programmed her to react at certain words," he said. "He may have programmed her to be argumentative at certain points; perhaps to stimulate him."

"Yeah, yeah," Jr nodded, finally understanding what Gainun meant. "That would make sense."

Gainun looked back at Faith. A flash of his eyes and instantly Faith felt safe. As if she didn't need to worry. She nodded at Gainun slightly, understanding why he had spoken like that. He was trying to help cover her up: Gainun was helping her.

"Where is Albedo?" Jr asked.

"Probably back at U-TIC by now," Gainun answered.

"So what did happen to her?" Jr asked, nodding towards Faith.

"He hit her pretty damn hard," he answered. "She was close to death when we found her. There was blood everywhere."

"Geez, I can't believe it …" Jr whispered, shaking his head. He scratched the nape of his neck nervously. "What a bastard."


	3. Thoughts to Words

**Chapter Three –**

**Feelings to Words**

As her legs quickly moved, following his pace close to his heel, her gold eyes quickly glanced at a clock on the wall. It was half two in the afternoon. How long had she got left until Master would be picking her up? Twenty to nineteen hours? Enough time, yes, but not if Gainun Kukai was refusing to give her information of the whereabouts of Momo. Faith knew he didn't know of that aspect of her; he didn't know why she was really there, but she knew he knew something about her. It was more then obvious, especially with the way he spoke to her.

"And the park is down that way," he said, pointing down the hall with his finger.

Faith nodded, not caring to take in any of his directions. She craned her neck to look up at him. With her bandaged hands she took the sleeve of his blazer, making him suddenly stop.

"What is it Faith?" he asked her, almost impatiently.

"Where might we be going?" she asked innocence in her face.

"The Bridge," he answered. His face softened seeing the innocence in her eyes.

"I would like to see my sister, Momo, please," she said, pulling his soft sleeve closer. She kept her eyes connected with his. "Please Mr Kukai, I'd feel so much safer with her."

A deep sigh left his mouth as he crouched down. She wasn't small; she stood at around 5"5, yet she was still like a child. For some reason he found himself treating her like one. He was smaller as he crouched, making her look down a little at him. Her head tilted to the side as he looked down to the ground.

"You need to understand Faith," he began. "That you're safe here; you don't need to visit Momo."

A passing Realian caused Faith's head to turn; her eyes followed her as she walked; disappearing down the hall. Gainun didn't need to follow her gaze that time: he knew exactly what Faith was staring at.

"See? There are others like you here," he said, squeezing her arm gently.

His fingers had pressed against a bruise on her arm, causing her to gasp. Her arm moved so that his fingers were no longer on her. A frown appeared on his face. "I didn't touch you that hard."

"I hurt my arm," she said.

Gainun nodded. "Right, sorry," he apologized with another nod. "Let's go to the bridge. We'll have a talk with Jr; try to appoint you a task."

Faith nodded, and then her fingers returned to his sleeve. "Mr Kukai, why did you cover up for me? Is there something you … know?"

His eyes shot left to right, checking there was no one in sight. A frown appeared on Faith's face, and then he returned his attention to her. He reached up for her head; for a second she thought he was going to strike her but he didn't. He took off the wig she wore and her eyes widened.

"You're no Kirshwasser," he said, looking at her natural hair. "You … I don't know what you are, but your no 99 Series. Another 100?"

"No Sir," Faith said, shaking her head. "I'm … not good enough to be a 100 series …"

"But your emotions …" he shook his head. "You can't have artificial Emotions, can you?"

"I'm not programmed with such a thing, Sir," she answered. "I don't even know what I'm programmed with. I … I can't even use a computer."

His eyes widened. "You can't?"

"No, Sir," she replied almost embarrassed. "I can drive E.S Machines and vehicles, but I couldn't in the beginning. I can't even connect with them through my mind: I have to manually control it."

"Then how can you be a Realian if you have no technological capabilities?" he asked.

Faith shrugged. "I'm not too sure myself," she said, her eyes not meeting with his. "I can detect where my sisters are. That's about it, I believe. Useless, aren't I?"

He shook his head, about to place his hands on her arms assuredly but remembered about her battered and bruised body. His hands pulled back only to be clung to by her damaged, bandaged ones. Her fingers that were uncovered felt soft against his; her skin was silky smooth, though he noticed one was a deep shade of purple; a painful bruise. Still, it seemed she didn't care for the pain as that finger was wrapped firmly around his. The white bandages were rough compared to her skin.

"You …" he cleared his throat, bringing his eyes up from their hands. "Aren't useless at all. Okay?"

Faith still looked at him, her face clouded with dismay she was trying her hardest not to show. She wasn't sure whether she was faking her sadness for a cover up for the mission, or because it was truly how she felt. Had it taken her so long to realize she was useless? Most of her life had been spent in anger towards Daddy for being so cruel: anger was also pointed towards Master for all the terrible deeds he had done. Along the way she had never thought of herself as useless; she just thought people were pathetic enough to hate her for no reason.

"That insolent man did it all to make you feel this way, didn't he?" Faith could feel Gainun's hands trembling under hers. A groan left his throat. "Damn, I can't believe how malicious he can be. Bastard."

Faith was getting worried now; would Gainun's anger manifest to such a point he would take it out on her like Master did? She gulped, breathing out deeply. "Mr Kukai?"

"Gainun," he corrected. "You don't need to call me that."

"Yes Sir," Faith nodded obediently.

"You don't need to call me 'Sir' either," he said.

She nodded. "Okay, Gainun," the name left a strange taste to her tongue.

He sighed deeply, letting all the anger inside of him disappear. How he wished his hands were around the throat of that man who he had once called brother. He wished his fingers were wrapped tightly around his thick neck, rather then around the fingers of this teenage girl. Looking at her with soft eyes, she resembled someone of the age of seventeen: she couldn't be more then that age, even as a Realian. She was young, naive and innocent: Albedo had no right to put the poor girl through what he had done, especially as this Realian was a girl: she was real. Unlike the others who were made with abilities to control computers, and other technologies: she was made to be a real girl.

But at least she was safe with him: he thought Albedo would never get to her again. He had dumped her and left her in his hands.

"I prefer the name Nigredo however," she said, giving him a small smirk.

Her voice had been so quiet, it would've been impossible to distract him from his thoughts. It was her words that were used in the sentence that pulled his mind back into reality. "Pardon? What did you just say, Faith?"

"I told you about me," she said firmly, most of the innocence seemed to have disappeared. "It's only fair that you speak to me about yourself too."

"It seems you already know quite a bit," he said, biting his lip. "How about you tell me what you know and I'll fill in the gaps?"

"That's not entirely fair," Faith frowned. Learning long ago not to argue back in expectations of getting her own way (which she never did) she spoke, obeying what he had said. "I know that you're U.R.T.V number 669; a brother to Master."

"Master?" Gainun repeated, skirting past the subject as best he could. Though it was an unconscious move, he soon found himself more into that conversation he wanted to create. "He has you calling him Master?"

"That wasn't part of what you said," Faith said, leaning foreword so her voice could be heard at a low whisper. "You're supposed to be filling in the gaps now."

"Such a strange Realian you are," he smirked, leaning foreword so that they were in their own little bubble. "Seeing as though you have practically all the story, all that you need to know at least, it's time for you to answer my question."

"Only if you answer another one of mine after," she smiled.

"So we're playing that game?" he raised a brow.

"Why not?"

He grinned a little, before breathing out for a long pause. Faith stared at him, feeling a little tension about what his question would be – would she be able to answer it? Would she want to answer it? The seconds passed slowly and she soon found herself dreading his question.

"Why did your father leave you?" he asked.

She paused before answering. "I wasn't like Sakura, Sir."

"Well you certainly have _some_ of her features," he commented, his eyes dancing around her face.

"It's my head," she said, about to point to her head but she remembered her hands were being held by his. She just tilted it to the side. "Guess I'm too … different to be his daughter."

They both stayed there in silence, neither of them knowing what else to say. But then Faith opened her mouth, breathing in before talking with a sweet voice.

"My turn," she smiled. A little face of dread came upon him. "What's your favourite colour?"

He paused, blinking a few times. He hadn't expected that, he expected something much more complicated. "You're stranger then I thought …" he mumbled under his breath. "Green."

"Like your eyes," she grinned.

"What about you?"

"You do realize you're wasting a question asking that, right?"

"I know," he smirked, his eyes playful.

"Gold or blue," she answered. "Depending on my mood."

Gainun nodded solemnly, as if she had told him something incredibly important.

Faith breathed inwards: her turn. "Are you really an executioner?" her voice was low, yet innocent; her eyes looked into his, though the contact was broken by him.

Gainun froze, though his shaking hands still stayed onto hers. He cleared his throat then returned his eyes to Faith, his beautiful lips curled into a smile. "No, of course not," he forced a laugh. Faith could see the fake, the sham he was trying to pull off yet it was so realistic. "Oh, don't listen to the ramblings Albedo may have said to you – he has a habit of making me and Jr seem worse then we really are."

Faith nodded, unsure of whether he was right or not. Master did have such a strange personality and did make things out to be worse then they really were, but did he lie?

'_Faith you useless doll!! You're just like them; another doll, get the hell out of my sight you pathetic girl!'_

The voice answered her question.

"He does like to lie," she lied, hanging her head. Master _never_ lied. He was very precise with his words, if you listened close enough and got passed his large, musical words.

"Did you ever like your father?" his words caused her eyes to widen.

The others loved Daddy, they all did. Perhaps they truly loved Daddy, or maybe it was something he programmed them with. Or maybe, with simple minds, the consciousness loves the parents; those that give life to it. Maybe at one point Faith did truly love her father; she remembered a time trying to compete for his attention, for his love and she was still angry at him for being so cruel to her. But … could she ever love him? Was that what love was? Feeling such strong feelings towards someone?

She bit her lip, shaking but then nodding her head. "Maybe – I hope not."

"You hope not …?" he repeated.

"Is that another question?" she asked.

"You didn't give me much to go on with the answer," he replied, playfulness in his eyes.

"Why do you care for such personal questions?" she asked.

"Curiosity," he replied, smirking. Then he tilted his head to the side. "Is that such a bad thing?"

"Curiosity didn't kill the cat, I suppose," she said her voice dull and uninterested.

He stood up, keeping his hands intertwined with hers. "Let's go now, okay?"


	4. Mad Sadistic

**Chapter Four –**

**Mad Sadistic**

Faith's eyes hovered around the elevator floor as they began to go up to the Bridge, where she would be meeting the rest of the crew. And hopefully, fingers crossed, that 100 Series; Momo.

Like he always could, Gaignun sensed the anxiety in Faith. Assuredly, he put a hand on her back, patting her gently. She flinched a little at his touch, but made no attempts to move. Her eyes stayed down to the floor, letting the fake silver hair cover her reddened face. It was so strange to be touched without the fear of being struck painfully.

He moved his hand, a little bit too soon for her and straightened his posture. He was in contrast with the little girl; his hands were behind his back, his entire body was straight and perfect as they waited. She, on the other hand, was slightly slouched, her hand on her beating heart and the other fumbling with the hem of her skirt like a child. Her eyes couldn't help but look up at the tall, handsome man beside her.

He looked down to her, feeling her gaze on his face. Suddenly, she looked back to the floor. Her cheeks began to feel warm, for some reason she didn't understand and she heard him laugh a little.

"You look a little flushed, are you okay?" his voice showed concern.

Her eyes widened, looking back to him with confusion. She brought a bandaged hand to her cheeks, feeling the warmth emitting from them. She was bright red, compared to how pale she was a few moments ago. With confusion, she looked back to the floor, trying to avoid eye contact with Gaignun at all.

'_What is this …?'_ she thought, keeping her fingers on her skin. _'I'm burning so badly – my cheeks are warm. I'm not ill am I? It's strange …'_

The elevator lifted them up into the Bridge, Gaignun stepped off the second he could, leaving Faith to stand there. There were many people on the Bridge, some Realians like herself; with silver hair and beautiful golden eyes; there were some other workers; and a small group of people. In the group of people Gaignun was walking over to, she recognized the one redhead; Jr or Rubedo, as Master always called him.

Faith wasn't sure what Gaignun was saying to them all, but the brunette woman turned her head, shooting a smile at her. It was one showing slight concern, but warm at the same time. Faith's hand came off her slowly pale turning face and her hand waved ever so slightly to her.

In response, the woman waved back but in a much more enthusiastic manner that made Faith's lips curl into a smile.

She turned back to Gaignun, listening intently and talking at the same time. Faith strained her eyes, trying to listen but she couldn't. She stood awkwardly, unsure of what to do. Her feet stumbled off the floor of the elevator, and she went over to the other side of the Bridge, leaning her back on the cold wall.

"Faith, come here," Gaignun softly called, beckoning her with his finger.

Obediently, she did as she was told, walking to them gracefully. Though she had many beatings, and was quite a klutz at times, she was angelic with the way she walked; taking her time and keeping a good pace. She came over to the group, but stood a few feet away from them.

"Hello there," the brunette woman smiled, offering a hand. "My name is Shion Uzuki."

Faith hesitated but took Shion's warm hand. "F-Faith," she introduced. Shion shook her hand gently, in fear of harming her sore skin.

"Faith, this is Ziggy and chaos," Gaignun introduced, letting her shake hands with each one.

"Hello," she simply said, happy when she could bring her hand to her side.

Faith's eyes glazed over to the other Realians, busy with their work. She shivered, wishing not to be like one of them with only one mission. She didn't want to have a single purpose; she wanted more then that. As she thought deeply, she hadn't realized someone calm was speaking to her.

"Does she not understand?" chaos' calm voice asked.

The question was directed to Gaignun, but Faith was soon to answer before he even had a chance. Her voice was sharp. "I _do_ understand."

"Then why didn't you reply to me?" he asked, looking to her.

"I was _thinking,_" she yelled, distracting the attention of everyone on the Bridge.

There was a pause of silence but her angry voice ripped through it. "What? Is that such a shock to you all?"

Her hands clenched up, her arms were shaking. She gritted her teeth, feeling angry towards these 'humans' for being so damn close minded.

"Faith, come on," Gaignun said, his voice alluring.

He put his hands on her shoulder and she immediately shook them away. "I'm alright," she snapped, turning her head to him.

They were silent as she took a few moments to compose her thoughts and get calm. She breathed out deeply, her breath shaking as she did so. Her eyes shut and she tried to hold back the annoying tears that were threatening to betray her. After a moment or two she looked back to chaos, who still had his eyes on her; looking quite concerned.

For some reason it sickened her but she shook her head. _'Don't be Goddamn rude,'_ she told herself. _'He's just being kind and don't forget you were the one who snapped.'_

"I apologize, sir," she said, hanging her head.

"Faith," Gaignun looked at her, a brow raised.

'_You don't need to say sir, remember,'_ she thought. _'Gaignun said so.'_

She gave him a small nod before returning her attention to chaos. "What did you say?"

"I asked whether you were hungry," he couldn't help but smile. "Would you like me to take you to the cafeteria to get something to eat?"

"I think," Gaignun said, wrapping his arm around her sore shoulders. "I would like to keep her under my eye for the time being, chaos."

Faith winced a little but still, didn't move away from his touch. He pulled her close to his body, as if she was a great possession of his. He smelled divine; his scent caused her cheeks to burn again.

"Ah, right," chaos nodded. "That is understandable and all."

"Jr!"

The sickeningly sweet childish voice caused Faith to sharply turn. Running from the elevator was the small girl with short pink her, and gold eyes identical to her own. The little 100 series greeted the redhead, Jr with a great hug, her perfect lips curled up into a smile.

Gaignun had pulled the now emotionless Faith a few steps back for some reason. When she looked up at his face, he looked quite serious; there was something on his mind as he glanced back down to her.

The 100 series was much smaller then the Kirschwasser, Faith. She looked down at her supposedly called 'sister' and glared furiously. She hadn't realized how frightening her face could've looked until the 100 series turned around to her.

She froze, with her gold eyes wide open. Gaignun could feel the anger emitting from Faith and he tried to hold her back but it was too late.

Faith had pulled herself from Gaignun's grip and was stood in front of Momo, looking down at the frightened Realian. Just as Gaignun was about to grab her again, Faith's hand raised and she smacked Momo full on the face.

She shrieked as she was pushed down to the floor by the hit, like Master had done many times to Faith. She was about to move and hit the Realian again when Gaignun's arms were wrapped firmly around her body.

"What the hell are you doing?!" he yelled, pulling her away from Momo.

It seemed the world suddenly began to work as Momo began to cry. Jr raced down to the floor, helping his friend. Gaignun was pulling Faith as far away as he could, struggling not to hurt her. She was putting up a fight, trying to pry his hands off her skin.

"Let me go!" she screamed. "I hate her, I hate her!"

"Faith calm down!" Gaignun yelled.

"You idiot!" Jr yelled at Faith. "I can't believe you hit her!"

"Jr, you're not helping at all," Gaignun firmly said, his voice almost threatening.

"But she didn't do anything," Jr said, helping Momo to sit up.

"You don't know anything, Rubedo," Faith hissed. The anger in her veins was getting stronger and stronger as the seconds went on, yet she knew it wasn't her usual behaviour.

Momo was looking up to her; her eyes shaking with fear. The tears were flowing quickly, she didn't even have the grace and respect to hold them back and it angered Faith more.

"If you weren't born, 100 series, then none of my sisters would be forced to feel pain," Faith yelled. She shook Gaignun's arms off her and walked to Momo. Jr kept his guard as she approached.

She rolled up the sleeves of her cloths, showing off many scars. They trailed up and down her pale skin, creating all sorts of patterns. Then, on the wrist on her left wrist, was a large A that could be seen. With angry eyes she looked to Momo. "Can you see all that I've been put through?" her yelling caused Momo to start crying again.

"That's enough," Ziggy said, standing by Momo. "You're not being fair to her at all, leave her be."

"Faith …" Gaignun whispered, his breathe tickled her skin; he was stood that close to her.

Feeling him close made her relax. She unclenched her fists and soon his fingers found hers. His one hand rested on her shoulder and he smiled down at her. "Let's go get something to eat, okay?"

She paused before nodding.

* * *

"So, if you don't mind me asking, why did he tattoo an A on your wrist?" Gaignun's voice was low, yet just as alluring as ever, causing her to blush.

Much calmer then before, she was sat in the chair, her arms on the table in front of her. Placed in front of her was a tray, with all kinds of food on it Gaignun had given her. When they got down to the cafeteria, about half an hour ago, she was so anger and disorientated she refused to tell Gaignun what she wished to eat so he ended up just grabbing some random stuff for her. Her hand was hovering over an apple just as he spoke them words, making her put it back down onto the table.

She exhaled deeply. "It's no tattoo – it's a burn."

His eyes widened in anger and shock, yet she could see more fury in them then anything else. "He burned you?!"

"It didn't hurt!" she tried to assure but it was an obvious lie. She showed it to him, thinking it would help. "See? Look it's all healed now."

His eyes looked down and he sighed. "You try too hard sometimes," he shook his head.

Just as Faith connected her eyes with his, the green gems flashed and a hand went to his temple.

"_Albedo …"_ he said out loud, gritting his teeth in anger.

"Master!" Faith gasped, unsure whether she was shocked in a good way or for the fact her Master was contacting him.

'_Having fun with my darling Kirschwasser?'_ Albedo asked, Faith unable to hear his voice.

"_You never told me she had a mind of her own,"_ Gaignun hissed. Faith moved back on her chair, unsure whether he was angry with her.

'_Oh that?'_ he laughed manically for a few, long moments, making Gaignun frown. _'I wouldn't call it that. Stupid girl probably programmed herself with something – quite useless if you ask me. Damn doll.'_

Gaignun had clenched his fists so tightly, his knuckles were turning white. _"Leave her be, you bastard."_

'_Has she found Momo yet?'_ Albedo asked curios.

"_Momo?"_ Gaignun repeated, he looked to Faith with suspicion. _"So, you're the one who made her lash out and hit her?"_

'_She hit ma belle peache?!' _Albedo yelled, completely shocked.

"_So you didn't know about that …"_ his suspicious eyes stayed on Faith's face, but she looked away, feeling her cheeks burn but this time not in a good way.

'_Tell that doll if she lays a finger on her again I will kill her,'_ he growled. _'If she cannot perform a Goddamn task then I believe I shall be taking her back.'_

Gaignun gasped as the link was suddenly cut. He spent a few minutes breathing quickly, to conduct himself and then his emerald gems looked at Faith. "Why did you harm her? Did someone else ask you to?"

"I did it," she answered, lowering her head. "I can make decisions for myself."

Gaignun groaned, but put a hand on hers. "I'm not mad," he assured, squeezing her hand gently.

***Okies totally suckage chapter, but I'm very tired right now so meh XD Thanks to everyone who reads this and reviews! ^^**

**Btw, me and a few friends are planning to do the Xenosaga Animation fandub, so if there's anyone who wants to voice act as a character from the Anime, just message me. xP ***


	5. My Doll

**Chapter Five –**

**My Doll**

Her head was hung as he attempted to get her back to the bridge. She felt ashamed for what she had done, yet she felt frightened in case she would harm Momo again. She knew if she was given the chance she would destroy that little brat; the little mechanical girl that thought she was better then the rest of them. She would destroy her in the most gruesome, enduring way possible. Faith knew if she was even put in the same room as her she would try and hurt her. With all the people on the bridge, however; all the people that seemed to love that little horror, she wouldn't stand a chance. She knew they would but in, probably hurt Faith whilst doing so.

No, she was sure they would hurt her. Especially that redheaded one. Jr; he probably despised her to the very core of his soul.

"You cannot stay hiding here all day you know?" Gaignun said, glancing around the quickly emptying cafeteria.

They had been in there for about an hour; many people were staring and giving them funny looks. And why wouldn't they? The leader of the Kukai Foundation, the most handsome and alluring man on the ship was hanging around with a Realian and not just any Realian; she was a Kirschwasser. The most low, most useless Realian of all time. No wonder they had been retired. At that moment Faith could almost, just almost understand a reason as to why Albedo killed them.

Though she hated the pain he put them through she couldn't help but think of something dark.

If their going to die, why not have some fun?

'_That's what I can only understand of Master,'_ immediately after thinking so she shivered violently. _'Don't think of such cruel things, Faith! We don't deserve pain, no matter how useless we are.'_

The people in the cafeteria hadn't said a word to her. They only spoke to Mr Kukai, some of the woman going red in the face when he answered back with a warm 'hello' and a soothing smile. As she watched, her head hung but her eyes looking up, she could see why the woman drooled and flustered over him so much. Gaignun was _handsome_ and even she couldn't deny it. She found herself sitting there in silence, cheeks burning red as the time went on.

"You're still not talking, I see," he said, reaching down for a grape. He put the green fruit in his mouth as Faith watched.

She found herself picking a grape and eating it, exactly like he had done. Her action caused him to smirk, which soon turned into a warm smile. "Well, at least you're eating."

Hoping she would copy again, he broke a piece off a chocolate bar, and then ate it. With her eyes showing playfulness, though her face was emotionless, she did exactly the same. She had never had the luxury of tasting chocolate before in her life and when the sweet substance touched her tongue and began to melt; she couldn't help but let her pink lips curl into a smile.

She savoured the piece of chocolate she had as long as she could, before swallowing it. Gaignun smiled at her again, his eyes had been kept on her the whole time. "So you like that, huh?"

She nodded. "I hadn't tried it before."

"Really?" he seemed genuinely shocked. "Not even when you were a child?"

She blinked. He had, surprisingly forgotten she was just a Realian. "I have only been the age of seventeen, Gaignun."

His eyes glowed when she used his name; she was learning and it made him strangely happy.

"I hadn't been a child," she continued. Her head hung, making her silver hair cover her face.

"Everyone has been a child," he said, flicking up her chin so that her head wasn't hung. He picked up the bar of chocolate and placed it in her hand. "Just because you may have an immortal body doesn't mean that you haven't felt the freedom of being a child, or the stress of being a teenager."

Not knowing what to say, Faith simply nodded. She looked at the chocolate in her hand, breaking a piece off. She began eating it, smiling at Gaignun who smiled back.

"I would be very interested to find out what you are, Faith," he said alluringly, keeping his eyes connected to hers. "I sense your father made you for another purpose. I doubt you were made for functions of a Realian only."

She blinked, astonished and swallowed the piece of chocolate she had in her mouth. Before speaking, she took a swig of coke, washing her mouth and then looked back to him. "You think so?" her voice was filled with a little bit of excitement.

"Yes," he nodded, reaching to her. Again, she was frightened he would strike her but he removed the wig. "So I don't want you to look like a Kirschwasser when you aren't one. No one like you could be made on accident, Faith and I believe your father didn't want you to be mixed up with your sisters."

'_My sisters …'_ she thought, feeling her cheeks burn. _'He … listens and understands. This is strange … I …'_

She had been so involved with her thoughts she hadn't noticed Gaignun had stood up from his seat, taking her wig with her. When a small bit of loneliness came upon her, she snapped into reality. Her eyes panicked, shooting around the room until she saw the black-dressed man walking to the trash can, holding her wig in his hands.

Her mouth inhaled deeply and quickly as she stood to her feet immediately. Her knees slammed against the table, the chair scraped across the floor, her entire balance was somehow lost and she found herself falling backwards. She shrieked as her back slammed into the wooden chair, sending pain to course through her body. She fell to the side, slamming her body onto the floor. The chair knocked over, soon following to fall on top of her and she squealed.

"Faith!" Gaignun cried in horror, racing to her. As he did his fingers unclenched the wig he held, dropping it to the floor.

A few other people in the cafeteria had stopped to stare, their minds deep in wonder as their leader raced to aid a Realian. He went down onto his knees, pushing the chair off her. A gloved hand reached to sit the chair up properly; Gaignun flashed the calm boy, chaos, a smile before he returned his attention to the hurt and injured Faith.

She lay, her body shaking, tears betraying her by staining her cheeks. Gaignun put his hand on her back; the other came to hold onto hers. He helped push her to sit up properly, she moaned as her aching body moved. She felt so sore, so tender it was horrible.

"Are you okay?" Gaignun kept asking, his voice becoming more and more filled with concern with each repetition. She kept nodding, giving a small 'mmm'. She tried to smile as best she could. It was getting easier and easier as the seconds went on, the pain was releasing.

"Is she alright?" a worker asked, approaching. She looked down at Faith, a little bit of concern was on her face.

"Yes, yes, she'll be alright," chaos smiled.

"She just … fell," the woman said, shaking her head. "It looked like she hit her back pretty hard. You sure she'll be okay?"

Faith groaned as she turned her head to the woman. She gave her a large smiled and nodded her head. "I'm okay, please don't worry about me ma'am."

The woman froze, looking at her gold eyes. "She's … a Realian?"

"Not quite," Gaignun said, putting a hand on her cheek. Though he spoke to the stranger, his eyes wouldn't stop gazing at Faith's face. "She's more human."

Faith's eyes shot to him. _'Human …?'_ she put her hand on his, smiling at him, her cheeks burned red and her stomach had a strange feeling to it. It felt … like a hundred little butterflies were squirming around, trying to get free. The fluttering feeling caused her body to nervously shake, like the butterflies wings were getting stronger.

Chaos turned around to the woman, giving her a polite smile. "There's nothing to worry about – Faith will be fine, so you should carry on with whatever you might have been doing before the event."

"Alright," the woman nodded. She looked to Faith, gaining her attention. She waved at her with her dark hand. Her pearly whites were shown in a warm smile. "Bye bye Faith, I hope that you're feeling better soon."

Stunned, Faith could only wave and nod as the woman scooted away. She was treated in such a lovely way by some of the people, it was unbelievable. Even chaos had kneeled down by her, checking none of her bones had broken even though she had insisted she was fine. They, Gaignun in particular, wanted to get her checked for any head trauma but she denied, saying she would know if there was something wrong. That she did know – from all the beatings by Master she knew if she had a broken bone, any internal bleeding or a concussion. She knew about pain that well she was able to distinguish between it with amazing accuracy.

He helped her to stand slowly, and though it hurt she ignored the sharp pain darting through her back. His hand ran down her slim body, resting at her waist, making her skin tingle. He seemed to have sensed this and was smirking; his lips pulled in an alluring, crooked smile. His other hand rested on her shoulder, pulling her close so she was able to put her weight on his body though she really didn't need to. As she walked with him touching her, she smiled. Never in her life had she expected to feel such warmth from a human being, yet alone one related to Master.

Chaos walked ahead of them, glancing back every now and then to check she was okay. Again, she felt warm from him being so kind, yet strangely not the same amount as she got from Gaignun's kindness. It made her frown, but she couldn't hold it for long. Another glance from Gaignun caused her to smile.

"I've never known a girl to blush as furiously as you," he laughed as they walked down the hall.

She gasped, looking up at him with widened eyes. Her hand moved to her face, touching her soft, overly warm skin. If it was possible, it seemed she turned even more redder at that moment. He looked down at her, smiling a little; a laugh left his throat.

"It's alright," he said, squeezing her shoulder. Though he was meant to be gentle, she still winced in pain. "Oh, I'm sorry," she nodded, telling him it was alright. He groaned, looking to chaos. "I'm missing out on a lot of work, aren't I?"

He looked back, and then made a small shrug. "I don't think so, Gaignun. If you fall back, you can always get someone to help you."

"Yes, that's right," he said, though his voice was still stale.

Faith looked to the floor, her pace slowed. "If I'm making you and your work suffer then I would prefer you to leave me."

"I'm not leaving you alone," he said, his voice deep and firm as if something was on his mind. Faith frowned but nodded. As he pulled her closer she realized something.

_She didn't want to go back to Master._

Faith bit her lip, trying to stop herself from sobbing. She found her arm wrapping around Gaignun, clutching him tightly with her small hands. He looked down at her, a brow raised. "What? What is the matter, Faith?"

"I need to go to the bathroom," she cried, pushing Gaignun away from her.

She quickly ran down the hall, running to the female bathroom. Thankfully it was empty as she came in. She couldn't understand why, but she didn't wish to cry, let alone in front of Gaignun. Her hands grabbed the white sink as she leaned foreword, feeling her hair cover the sides of her face. She felt the warm, salty tears run down her cheeks, her breathing was loud and shaky.

"I knew a doll as pathetic as you could not hold up for long,"

Faith's entire body froze and ceased up as she heard the cold voice. Forcing herself to, she lifted her head, being able to see her Master in the reflection of the mirror. She winced at the sight, feeling all hope and all the good feelings she had been given in the few mere hours disappear. Just one look at him returned her body with the fear and dismay she had grown to know so well.

His face was dark, his purple eyes were glowing and he leaned his back on the frame of a stall. He could see her petrified face in the reflection of the mirror, causing his manic laugh to emerge from his throat. Uncontrollably for a few minutes he just stood there laughing, as Faith breathed in and out shakily.

"Oh Faith, dear, dear," he said, laughing as he did.

His face suddenly straightened, his glowing eyes stared at her angrily. "What is that you do not get about following my Goddamn instructions?!!"

She saw his hand rise and she shut her eyes, preparing herself. She shrieked as his hand slapped across her head, pushing her down to the floor. Another groan left her throat as she hit the tiled floor. Albedo was soon to stand above her, his legs on either side of her body preventing her from any escape.

"Turn around and face me," he ordered with a deep, dark voice. He grabbed Faith's collar and turned her around so that she lay on his back, able to stare up at his frightening face. He grinned, and then moved down onto his knees. He straddled her, though his body tried not to much too much weight on her.

"Get off me," she begged, squirming and wriggling.

He leaned in and touched her lips with his, kissing her. She made noises of no as she tried to move away. Her arms rose to push him away, put his hands were too fast. He grabbed her arms with strong hands, pushing them down onto the tiled floor; she was prevented from any escape whatsoever.

When her lungs began to crave for air he suddenly pulled away, giving her a moment to choke. As she did, she felt the tears running down her face, angering Master. His hand released one of her arms but only to slap her face, making her moan.

"And where the hell is your wig?" he yelled, bringing his face so close to hers their noses almost touched.

"G-Gaignun …" she mumbled, too frightened to speak. He was so close, so close to doing what he had done to her sisters but not to her.

"Let me go," she begged. "I'll come back home, but don't do it. Please!"

"You're just a doll," he said, bringing his hand down to the hem of her skirt, threatening to search under it. "Why do you care whether I do it or not?" he laughed. "Besides, you'll be coming home with me whether you like it or not."

She shook her head, and then looked to the door. His gaze followed hers and then he laughed. "You cannot escape, Faith," he told her, putting more weight on her body she wouldn't be able to shift. He leaned down, beginning to peck of her neck with soft kisses. She moaned, feeling herself falling into the trap her sisters had.

First he'd be soft, so soft and gentle, and then he'd be horrible; abusive and just unpleasant.

"Stop it …" she whispered, squirming. "Just stop …"

"You like it …" he laughed, continuing to nip at her skin.

Faith clenched her fists as she opened her mouth to scream. "_Gaignun!!!_" she screamed as loud as she could. Her sudden yell shocked Albedo, his teeth accidently tearing down at her skin, piercing it.

He looked down at Faith, a large grin. "You expect him to save you?" he laughed sorrowfully. "You're so pathetic, Faith. So naive."

The door suddenly shot open, making them both jump. Stood there was Gaignun, a look of pure horror on his face as he spotted them. A firm glare was shot to his brother when he saw him with Faith like that. "You bastard!!" he yelled. "Get the hell off her!"

"Hmm?" he blinked, looking down a Faith whose eyes were set on him. Then, he looked back to the protective Gaignun and laughed. "Oh how interesting! You've fallen in love with a doll!"

He took a step back, his eyes widened. He shook his head. "No," he gritted his teeth. "Don't you dare call her a doll, you insolent jerk!"

Faith stared at Gaignun, completely taken back. He was fighting for her?

Albedo stood up. Gaignun was about to run for Faith, but Albedo had already lifted her up with her neck. His grip was tight, but not enough to stop her from breathing. He pulled her to her feet, making her stand. His arm went around her body, holding her close by. She tried to pry his arms open; she wanted to be in the arms of Gaignun, not this madman who she was sure would kill her. With hopeless eyes she looked to Gaignun, who took a step foreword.

"Isn't it funny how you _and_ Rubedo both think you have to satisfy yourselves with these toys?" he laughed, pressing down on Faith's collarbone so hard it caused her to moan.

"I said stop calling her that!" he growled. "She's no doll for you to use. She's real; I've learned that in the few hours of knowing her."

Albedo laughed. "Oh Nigredo, so silly aren't you?" he continued to laugh. "So many woman on this ship that would do anything for you, yet you waste your time with this. You're just clouding yourself with little dreams and illusions."

"I could say the same for you," he yelled back. "Now give her back to me!"

"To _you_?!" his voice was loud, almost defining Faith. "This belongs to me; she is not yours and never will be."

"Gaignun …" Faith moaned, still trying to wriggle away.

Albedo smirked, pulling her closer. "Let's go Faith," he said, walking to Gaignun. He pushed his brother into the wall with such strength; he groaned and fell onto the floor.

"No, no!!" Faith screamed as Albedo began to drag her out of the bathroom, holding her close to her body. "Let me go, just let me go!! Gaignun!"

She kicked and screamed but there was no hope. She was back in the arms of Master, knowing she would face extreme damage, and if not death. Master would not take pity on her, as he would have believed her to be a traitor for her day's activities and actions. She knew she would find herself crawling back into the same spot of the bedroom again. She knew she would be sobbing over the loss of Gaignun. How she wished to be back with him, where she at least got to sense being a normal girl. In a few mere moments she thought her life was getting better, but the cruelty of a single man brought her all the way back down.


	6. Plans

**Chapter Six –**

**Plans**

Faith couldn't really remember what had happened when she arrived back on the ship in Master's possession. Either he had beat her so severally she genuinely couldn't remember, or her mind was so emotionally damaged by it all she refused to remember, pushing it out of her head. It was a good thing really; she didn't want more of those horrible memories of being beat looming in her head if she could help it. All she could remember was the stench of blood and the anger emitting from his skin. The anger … oh it was terrible.

When her eyes slowly opened to welcome the new day she was sure for those split seconds, where one doesn't remember where they are, that she was dead. Oh how she wished she was dead, that would make life so much better for her. But the aching pain in her body reminded her she was living; the horrible pain she was forced to wake up to every morning was much worse for that morning. So much worse she couldn't even bring herself to roll over and see if Master was there.

Not that she wanted to meet with his terrifying face.

She lay as still as a doll, hoping that he would somehow forget about her. She hoped that somehow she would disappear into the soft sheets, never to be seen again. Maybe even enter her own little, soft, warm and cosy world. The world was peacefully pleasant and silent as she lay there. She found her eyes shutting, yet she refused to let herself sleep. As she lay there she wondered for a moment whether Master was even in the same room.

But the scuffle of the sheets and a deep breath behind her answered her thoughts. Her muscles tensed as she felt him roll about in the bed, wondering whether he had turned around from her or was facing her. The hairs on her back pricked up, her body shivered though she tried not to. Her hand slowly moved up to her mouth as she tried to conceal her breaths.

She felt him stir in the sheets as he awoke, making her burry herself deep into the covers. She pulled the sheets over her head, breathing in the smell. Keeping a little bit open, she was able to look out into the room. Her fists held tightly onto the soft material as he stepped out of bed. She hunched her shoulders, trying to keep her breathing even. She wanted him to forget about her, just forget, forget, forget.

He moved some of the sheets where he had been lying before moving around the room. She could see him walking to the bathroom silently, leaving her. But then he stopped at the door, and she could see his lips in that half crooked, evil smile. It caused her heart to skip a beat and she moved more into the bed. His hand rested on the door as his eyes shut; the grin seemed to widen.

"I see that you are awake already," his voice was threatening and deep. "Quite surprising after last nights activities, don't you think?"

Faith gasped, looking down at herself. She was wearing her usual white sorts and white spaghetti strap top. He too, was wearing his sleeping cloths so that mustn't have been what he meant. He hadn't done that to her, had he? He was close … so, so close but she was sure he hadn't.

He began to laugh his manic laugh he always did. "Oh Faith, dear, it's so fun to play with you, do you know that?" his laughing suddenly ceased. "Before you even think if I did _that_ to you don't bother. I'm saving you for last, after all these other beautiful Kirschwasser's."

She bit her lip, feeling sorrow for her sisters. Then she breathed out deeply. "If I ever gave myself to you, would you leave my sisters be?"

He laughed again, coming to the bed. He ripped the sheets off Faith, looking down at her with glowing eyes. "Now where would the fun be if you just _gave_ yourself to me?"

He slapped her face before walking to the bathroom. "Get ready, now," he yelled.

He entered the room, leaving Faith to lye there, quivering. Her hand reached to her cheek that stung. Just less then 24 hours ago Gaignun's soft fingers touched her there, soothing her. How she wished he was back, holding her and telling her it would be okay.

* * *

She didn't know what she was doing but in her hand she held a small, kitchen knife she had found around the bedroom. Gulping, she pushed the side of her body against the wall, waiting for Master to come out. She had never thought of harming her Master before, she didn't even know what she was thinking but she was so desperate to save herself and her sisters that she would do anything. Breathing in and out, she conducted the plan in her head; he would open the door, she would quickly run ahead, pushing the knife in front of her and into his flesh. She had to make sure it was a devastating blow, as she knew he would attack her straight away. Faith knew she would have one chance of stabbing him and she had to make it worth it.

When the door opened, it wasn't like she expected. Time didn't slow down; instead it seemed to have sped up. Rushing foreword, she put the knife in front of her. By Master's expression, she knew he hadn't had a clue what she was going to do. She pushed the knife into his chest, hearing him groan. She pushed the knife in as deep as she could, feeling his blood spray on her face from the quick stab.

He screamed as it pierced his skin, his hand raised to hit her. Seeing his hand, Faith let go of the knife, keeping it inside of him. Before she had a chance to move he had slammed her head against the frame of the door. She felt her skull crack, causing her to scream out in pain.

Faith's body fell to the floor; she could feel her blood running down her face from her forehead. Her sight was blurry but she managed to look up at Master, who was pulling the knife from his flesh. He moaned in pain as he did so, the blood running everywhere. But, then he just laughed.

"Stupid girl," he said through clenched teeth. "You've forgotten already, haven't you?"

"No …" she whispered, remembering about his power.

The wound on his chest magically began to heal, and her eyes widened. She stared at the bloody knife in his hand and wriggled back. Her heart was pounding with fear and regret as she prepared herself. So this was how she was going to be murdered by him. So many times she had thought of it in her head, but she hadn't expected it to really have happened.

_People are destined to die, but why must I die in the hands of him?_

"No …" she begged as he ventured closer to her. Though she knew he hated them, the tears began to flow down her face, staining her cheeks.

"That was such a silly move, ma poupee," he said, obviously trying to contain his anger. "Whatever made you do such a thing?"

He grabbed her by the throat and made her lay down properly on her back. Again, he straddled her, putting more weight on her weak body. The knife he held was pushed against her neck, preventing her head from moving an inch. Her terrified looked up to his angry ones and she moaned. Her wound on her head was stinging and she could feel the blood running down to her cheek, dripping onto the floor.

"Come on," he said. "Dazzle me. I'm curious now, poupee; whatever made you want to do such a thing to me?" he grabbed her forehead with his hand, and pulled the knife away enough for him to lift her head. Her eyes widened, and then shut tightly as he slammed her head onto the floor. She shrieked again, and more tears ran down her face.

"Let me go …" she breathed. "Please …"

"You might as well tell me," he said, pushing the knife into her neck. The blade began to split her skin, making her gasp. Her fists clenched. "I didn't want to do this, but you're becoming such a nuisance …"

"What …" she struggled to speak. "Will you do without me?"

His eyes widened, and he looked into hers with curiosity.

"When the others can't do anything but bleed," she said. "And the only one that can provide you with any satisfaction is dead, what will you do?"

"What the hell are you implying, Faith?" he growled.

"I can see it in your eyes," she whispered. "You'll feel regret for killing me."

"You're lying you damned doll!!" he yelled, pushing deeper into her neck.

"Don't …" she whispered. "Do that … you're close to getting that blade into my throat. Once you do, I will have to have Nano Technology. If you fail to do that, I will die."

He growled, staring at her. "I won't need you when I have that hundred series."

"You bastard …" she growled through clenched teeth.

He took the knife away from her, and slit her wrist. She cried out in pain as the blade tore her skin. He still straddled her but removed his hands from her body, knowing she was slowly becoming weaker and weaker as the blood drained from her body. She looked at her blood drenched wrist, and then back up at her grinning Master.

"I'd have thought you'd kill me in a more interesting, and fun way," she whispered.

"Who said I was going to kill you?" he laughed, hitting her head with such strength she was knocked out.

* * *

"_Faith … Faith can you hear me?"_

"_Gaignun?!!" Faith rolled about in the bed. "It hurts Gaignun, it hurts …"_

"_I know, I know," he whispered. She felt as if he was whispering in her ear, but she was too weak to open her eyes and find out._

"_Where are you?"_

"_The Durandle," his voice was almost sad._

"_Where I am?" she rolled in the bed, feeling the sheets tangling up with her limbs. "Am I dead?"_

"_You're still with Albedo," he answered. "I'm telepathically connecting with you."_

"_Ugh, Gaignun …" she moaned. "It hurts so much …"_

"_Shhhhh, it's okay, the pain will go away soon," he promised._

"_I'm going to die?!" she gasped, turning quickly in the bed. She tried to wake herself up, though she couldn't. It was like being in a strange dream. "Gaignun don't let him kill me, don't, please!!"_

"_I'm not going to," he promised. "I never, ever will. Stop trying to wake up, Faith; you'll break the mental link."_

"_Okay," she agreed. "Why are you connecting with me anyway?"_

"_I felt as if something was wrong – I don't know why. What did he do to you?"_

"_He was so angry … so …" she felt tears running down her cheeks as she lay in the bed. "I tried to kill him Gaignun."_

"_Oh Faith …" she could hear him sighing.  
"Someone's here …" Faith said, trying to wake up. She could feel a set of hands on her body, the bed she lay on disappeared under her. "Gaignun, someone's taking me away."_

_There was silence._

"_Gaignun?!!"_

* * *

Faith's eyes suddenly shot upon, looking up into the face of Master. She gasped, shocked and tried to wriggle but his arms were around her too tightly. He glanced down at her momentarily before looking ahead of him as he carried her down the hall. His face was unusually emotionless; Faith was unable to tell whether he was angry, sad or even pleased with himself or her for being alive. As she moved a little, she noticed a bandage around her wrist. Her hand that wasn't wrapped around Albedo's back came up to her head, to feel another white bandage.

The paralyzing silence they were in was almost frightening. Her eyes couldn't look away from his milky coloured face, she wanted so badly to figure him out and find out what he was thinking but it was impossible. She wondered whether he was taking her to be disposed of, but why hadn't he already killed her?

"Where are you taking me?" she eventually asked; her voice quiet.

"I thought I would take you away from the hospital room," he said his voice emotionless. "You don't like hospitals, do you?"

She gasped a little, but then nodded. "That's right …"

"I couldn't have you having a fit whilst I spoke to you," he almost hissed. She frowned a little at his behaviour change. "We're getting the 100 Series today," he said. His glowing eyes looked threateningly to her. "You dare lay a finger on her and I'll finish what I planned to do earlier. That girl is mine."

She bit her lip.

"Okay?!" he yelled.

"Yes sir," she nodded quickly.

***Okies, short chapter – I know, I'm lazy. But yeah, hope you enjoyed. I'll put up a better, bigger chapter later so don't worry ^^;**


	7. Rescue

**Chapter Seven –**

**Rescue**

There was so much stuff going on, Faith was unable to understand, probably because she was unwilling to as well. All she knew was that Master had used something called the Song of Nephilim and they were on it, or something like that – they defiantly were somewhere new: he had taken her there whilst she had been knocked out. Whatever the Song was, she had no idea. She tried to listen to his insistent ramblings, trying her hardest to put the words together to make a sentence but they wouldn't. The words were a blur to her ear, the only thing that made sense to her was the Kukai Foundation he had told her they had been to. When she heard that, her heart skipped a beat and again she was on her own trail of thoughts, missing key information Master was telling her about their mission.

She was thinking about Gaignun again, the man she wanted to be saved by. She wondered whether she would be able to escape from Master when his back was turned; if his back was turned. She knew he would be on guard, especially after the previous day's events. If she even had the small chance of being able to runaway, what would happen if he caught her? He most likely would and if Gaignun had been unable to help her before, would he be able to help her again? Again, she knew he wouldn't. Besides, if she ran away and Master even got the slightest chance he would kill her in a heart beat.

One quick swipe and she would be dead. It wouldn't be about his game, or being angry. He would do it for revenge. He would do it because she would have betrayed him. If Albedo couldn't have his Kirschwasser's all to himself, then no one could.

"I need you to lead her here to me, in this throne room," she heard Albedo's muffled voice say.

Her? What the hell had Faith missed?

It seemed just then the world seemed open up to Faith. She moved about slowly, feeling arms around her body. Blinking a few times, she tried to adjust to the dark room she sat in. Soon she realized her Master was sitting underneath her, holding her close to his body. Suddenly feeling his arms around him, his warm body holding onto hers caused her to wriggle around and begin to pry his fingers off her flesh. He made no attempts to move, and seemed uninfected by her fidgeting.

"Get off me …" she moaned as he put his arms around her stomach. He folded his arms, holding her tightly yet in a none-painful manner. "Master, let me go so I may carry out my duties."

"Such politeness, poupee," he almost laughed. She could feel his breath against her hair, his head inches behind her. "You're welling up with anger inside you, aren't you though? Trying to hold it back?"

"It's disgust, actually," she almost hissed, trying to pull his metal grip off her.

"Disgust?" he repeated, laughing manically this time. "You wish to feel disgust?"

She frowned a little as he spoke; his words suddenly became as cold as ice. "Open your eyes properly, Faith. You cannot force it out of your mind forever – I know how disorientated you are from seeing what you saw, but it is real."

She blinked a few times, keeping her eyes down to her lap. She felt like something terrible, something horrifying would meet with her eyes if she dared to look up. Biting her lip, she shook her head. "I refuse. I refuse to look, Master."

"Look you damned doll!!" he impatiently yelled down her ear, causing her to flinch. "Stop being so damn pathetic and face the world!"

He grabbed her natural hair, pulling her head sharply up. A small shriek came from her mouth as he did so, her eyes widened, rather then shut like she wished. She felt a small tear run down her cheek from the sharp pain of him pulling her hair, but then the pain seemed to disappear as her eyes met with the most horrifying sight ever seen to her. Her breathing had ceased, her muscles tensed up.

At maximum were a dozen of her sisters, lying limp on the floor. Their eyes were dull, lifeless as she looked painfully into each of them. She felt her body trembling as his hand released from her hair, only to move back around her stomach. He pulled her close, absorbing the tremble that went through her body. She began to breathe in deep breathes; each one more shaky and loud then the last. A few tears betrayed her by running down her cheeks and a strong sense of fear came about her as she felt Master's breathing close by her.

"They had all died so quickly," he said with disappointment in his voice as if they were a bunch of badly made toys. "I do hope that you do not die as quickly – I would like to lengthen your death out as long as I can."

Faith shivered again, her eyes couldn't get off her dead sisters. The fear that had come to her was quickly replaced with a strong sense of anger. "You bastard … I hate you …"

"Hate is such a strong word, poupee," he whispered. "Do you know how saddened that makes me to believe that you hate me? After all I had done for you …" he took a moment to push his fingers deep into her stomach, causing her to wince. "After all I had given you and yet you hate me?"

His one finger slid through the gap between her buttons of her cloths. His gloved, thin finger was soon to touch her pale stomach, causing her skin to shiver. He was so cold as he touched her, making her shiver again. She made no attempts to push him away this time; instead she let Master do what he was going to do. She could feel his sharp nail, even under the glove, working its way through her flesh, making her gasp.

"Do you even know why you're alive, poupee?" he asked, digging deeper into her flesh. His nail eventually pierced her pale skin, causing her to breathe inwards in slight pain.

"I do," she answered. "But you may as well leave me dead, with all the pain you cause to me."

"You ungrateful Doll!!" he yelled.

With immense strength, he pushed her off her lap, making her scream in shock. She rolled down the few steps from the throne, her bones popped and cracked with each hit on the ground. One final hit to her body and then she landed on the ground, lying still for a few moments. She felt sore, her bones aching in all places; her skin trembling. She clenched her fists, awaiting another yell, another beating but there was nothing. She lay in the silence, only being able to hear herself drawing breaths in and out quickly.

Then Master's terrifying voice broke the silence. "I don't need you for the time being. Look's like ma belle peache has found her own way here …"

There was a sudden pain overwhelming her head as she pulled back into paralyzing unconsciousness. Her body fell limp, as it did so her last thoughts were of her death:

'_Death by Master …'_

* * *

'_Chaos, let's go!'_

'_Gaignun wished for me to collect her too,'_

'_He'll just take her back,'_

'_If that's what Gaignun wishes, then I have an obligation to follow him, besides, look how much she has been through – we can't just leave her here. It's … inhuman.'_

* * *

Awakening slowly, she was met with something so much more different. She could feel artificial sun bathing on her open flesh; something so warm and inviting. The sun glared on her eye lids, something she hadn't experienced before. She felt her body was spread out across a double bed, rather then cooped up on one side. The sheets smelled of a wonderful, fresh scent; something in the mixture of soft lavender and sharp hint of strawberries. The sheets were laid softly on her, light yet warm on her body. Though they stopped above her chest, and her arms were spread out above them, her skin still felt toasty warm; the air in the room was warm.

She moved her head a little, feeling soft cushions underneath her; at least two large ones and a smaller one tucked behind her ear. A blissful moan left her lips as she blinked, opening her mind in a well lit, bright room. It was completely different to Master's dark quarters with dark painted walls, and dark carpeted floors.

She could tell the bed was in the centre of the room, a wooden, small, bedside table was beside it. On top of it was a glass vase with a single lily sitting inside of it peacefully. Next to the table was a door, an old fashion wooden one, most likely leading to a bathroom. On the wall she faced she could see a large, dark, wooden wardrobe; what was in it she didn't know but she could see the door was slightly open, showing someone had been inside of it recently. The carpet of the room was a soft white shade; the walls a gentle yellow, lit up by the artificial, crisp morning sun.

For a moment she wondered whether she was in heaven, but as her eyes looked down to her body she could see how black and blue she was. Slowly, she moved the sheets off her body, revealing she was wearing a pair of white shorts and a black spaghetti top, similar to what she wore with Master. The fabric felt like silk against her skin, smelling just like strawberries, which was probably what she could have smelled mixed with the lavender.

Her belly could be seen a little, showing a small cut where Master had dug into her. She pulled the shirt down, covering the cut. Her wrist was still bandaged, and she felt for the one around her head that was still there. She noticed how her hands were still bandaged, but they were clean; someone had recently taken good care of her.

Of course someone had taken good care of her. Her skin was clean, her hair was too; cloths had been provided for her and she had been given a room of her own. That was defiantly something to be grateful for. Her stomach rumbled, showing she hadn't ate but she didn't mind; Faith rarely got the chance to eat with Master and so was used to the feeling.

With her hands she pushed herself to sit up properly. Her fingers ran down her straight hair, neatening it out. She put her legs out in front of her, sighing blissfully as she just sat there, enjoying the peace of awakening without fear. Something in her gut told her not to be frightened and with accommodation like this, she couldn't give a rat's ass about who may have saved her.

The door beside her slowly opened, obvious the person on the other side was trying to keep quiet if she was still sleeping. She turned her head to see who the person was. Immediately, her cheeks burned bright red and her mouth let in a loud gasp as her eyes met with the person.

He walked out of the bathroom, straightening out his white shirt as he did so; catching his fingers on the clear buttons. He wore a pair of black trousers, his hair was slightly messy as usual and his face was bright, a smile appeared on his face when his eyes met with Faith's; his eyes seemed to glow.

"Good morning," he smiled, walking over to her. He put a hand on her shoulder and smiled warmly at her. "Did you sleep well?"

"Y-yes," was all she could get her mouth to say. "Thank you."

He smiled again and nodded. "That's good. I'm happy to hear that you rested well," he looked down at her slightly dazed and confused expression. "It's okay," he assured, squeezing her bare shoulder. "You're here now – you're safe. I got you back."

"You … got me back …?" she whispered.

"Yes," he nodded, happily. The smile on his face wouldn't disappear. "We've gotten you away from that man. Forever this time, Faith. I promise."

She widened her eyes, blinking. "R-really?" he nodded.

She suddenly pushed herself up onto her knees and slammed her body into his. He was a little taken back as she wrapped her battered and bruised arms around his slender body. But, he answered in kind, putting his around hers and holding her close. She straightened her back to get taller, so that she could rest her head between his shoulder and neck; a few happy tears ran down from her eyes.

"Thank you," she said. "You're amazing, Gaignun, thank you."

He smiled, laughing a little. "It's okay."

She pulled away from him; her cheeks redder then he had ever seen them. She smiled sheepishly, before opening her mouth to speak. "Where are we?"

"The Durandle," he answered, moving away. He opened the closet, bringing out a black blazer. "There are some cloths in here for you, would you mind getting dressed?"

"Yes," she nodded, getting up.

Her knees gave way under her as she stepped onto the soft carpet, but Gaignun was soon at her side, holding her up before she had a chance to hit the ground. His hand was on her shoulder, the other around her waist as he held her close, helping her to stand.

"There we go," he said, loosening his grip when he was sure she had balance. "Are you okay? I don't want you falling over again."

"I'm okay," she nodded, smiling gratefully. "I'll be fine in a few moments, my knees are always weak when they're aching and I've just awoke."

He nodded sadly, seeming to have been upset by the thought of her being hurt. She bit her lip, turning her head so that she couldn't say anymore. She turned around to the bed about to make it when he pulled her away.

"That isn't your job," he firmly said. "You don't need to do that, Faith."

She nodded, quickly walking away to the wardrobe; her steps quick and small. With her hand she pulled the door open, letting her look into the closet. On the left side were all his cloths, mostly suits and trousers, a few jumpers here and there, the odd pair of black jeans; nothing too bright or fasinating that would tell her much about him. When she turned to the right side she was greeted with a shock. He had given her beautiful, elegant clothing that was slightly casual at the same time. There were skinny jeans, long tops with laces and ribbons, tutu's and skirts, spaghetti tops in all sorts of colours that she loved, and many other pieces of clothing.

"This is …" she shook her head. "It's too much Gaignun. Where did you even …?"

"I am the leader of the Kukai Foundation," he said behind her. His hand came on her shoulder. "And if I wish for you to be properly looked after, with beautiful clothing and everything you desire, there is nothing stopping me."

"That sounds pretty big headed," she grinned.

"I know," he chuckled. "But you understand don't you?" he turned her around, looking deep into her gold eyes. He poked her nose gently. "I'm looking after you now, Faith – you're a normal girl under my care and I want you to be happy."

She smiled, feeling her cheeks flush again. "Thank you, Gaignun."

"I could even get you your own room if you wish," he said. "I only had you sleep in here because I was worried you would awake confused. I slept on the floor, so don't worry about that."

She shook her head. "Gaignun, I appreciate it so much," she smiled. "I want to be in the same room as you anyway – I feel safe with you. But," she sighed. "You don't need to sleep on the floor."

Faith laughed a little, not letting him answer back. She turned around to the wardrobe and looked over the cloths. "Now, what to wear …" she pushed some of the cloths to the side so that she could see them properly. After a few moments she fished out some cloths, and then swiftly retreated to the bathroom to get changed.

"I'll be waiting here for you," Gaignun called as she shut the door.

On the other side she smiled gratefully, and soon was getting herself into the new cloths. It was strange wearing something other then her uniform that she was forced to wear day after day, but it was a wonderful feeling. After doing that, brushing her teeth and combing her hair back neatly; she came out of the bathroom.

He grinned at her new appearance. Faith came out wearing a simple pair dark grey skinny jeans, a red long top with abstract black patterns spiralling across, and lace coming down the side, and a pair of black and red, fingerless gloves. So casual, but so different compared to her restricted uniform.

"Feels weird," she mumbled under her breath as she came to Gaignun.

"Yes, but you look divine," he smiled, flicking some of her hair back from her face.

She froze, thinking about Master. He had said that so many times, in the most terrifying voice and though Gaignun's was sweet and soft, she couldn't help but think of him. She took a step back, and looked to Gaignun. "Can I ask where Master is?"

He sighed, almost like a groan, before putting his fingers to his temple. "I planned not to tell you that part …"

"What part?" she asked. "Where is Master?"

"Faith, stop saying that," he said. The irritation is his voice was strong, causing her to step back. Would Gaignun ever strike her? He seemed to have picked up on her fear and his expression softened. "I'm sorry I just cannot stand the thought of you needing to call him Master."

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, hanging her head. "I just wish to know where he is."

"He hasn't told you of his plans, has he?" he asked, sitting on the bed. He beckoned for her to sit by him and she obediently did so.

"He had collected Momo, captured her from the Kukai Foundation," he said.

"I know," she nodded. "He had knocked me out during that time. He knows me too well …"

"What do you mean?" Gaignun asked, leaning close as they found themselves in their own bubble again, forgetting about the rest of the world.

"I would've escaped," she said. "I know he would've killed me, hell he probably will now if he gets the chance, but I wanted to get away. I wanted …" she felt her cheeks burn. "I wanted to get back here to you, where I'm safe."

He smiled. "Well, you're here now," he said, flicking up her chin again so that her head wasn't hung. "Anyway, we got Momo back. I asked chaos to fetch you whilst they were there, and he followed my instructions."

She smiled again. _'He wanted me back. But why I wonder?'_

"There has been a lot going on," Gaignun continued. "At this moment he has summoned Proto Merkabah."

"I don't know what that is," she whispered.

"It's okay, you don't need to know," he smiled. "Jr and the others are on their way there as we speak, about to ruin his plans."

Faith nodded, looking down to the ground. She stood up, forcing a smile. "All this for Y-Data…" she sighed deeply. "I can't stand that 100 Series, Momo."

"Try to hold it in," he told her, standing. "She's just an innocent girl, like you so don't forget that."

"Okay," she nodded.

He held out his hand, which she took without second thoughts. "We need to go to the Bridge. I can't lose anymore time then I already have."

"I'm sorry," she said, hanging her head.

"Don't be sorry," he said alluringly, flicking up her chin again. "And stop hanging your head – I cannot see your beautiful face if you do that."

Those annoying little butterflies appeared in her stomach again as he took her to the bridge. They walked in silence, Faith keeping her head up like he had told her to. She was still flushed from his words as they got to the bridge, and he smirked a little. When they arrived he whispered something in her ear.

"I've never known a girl to flush as long as you, either," he smirked.

"You're making it worse," she laughed.

He still didn't let go of her hand as they came into the Bridge, standing in front of the wide screen. She got a few hello's from the odd couple of people, two woman; Mary and Shelly greeted Gaignun quickly, showing him warmth with great hugs.

"So this is the little one you were telling us about?" Mary smiled, looking at Faith. She couldn't understand why she had used the words 'little one'. Faith had to have been at least the same height as her.

Still, she smiled warmly. "I'm Faith," she introduced, shaking each of their hands in turn.

"Albedo has summoned a Gnosis," a man said, his voice with slight horror.

"A Gnosis?" Faith repeated, taking a step foreword. "How can Master do that? Is he truly capable of doing such a thing?"

"It seems like it," Gaignun said, taking a step foreword. "Where is Albedo?"

"He's escaping," the man answered.

"Damnit!!" Gaignun hissed, slamming his fist on the red side. Faith bit her lip, feeling his hand trembling.

"It's okay," she tried to say, putting her hand on his back.

She laughed a little. "He's so silly," she laughed again, covering her mouth.

"What are you laughing at?" Gaignun asked, turning around to her.

"The Y-Data's protected," she smirked. "Do you really think Daddy is stupid enough not to put protection on it? He was so picky about who was able to posses it …" she shook her head. "Albedo is just doing this for no reason what so ever. He won't be able to use it."

Gaignun blinked a few times at her. Then, the voice of the man distracted him from whatever thoughts he had.

"The station has been destroyed," he said. "The Elsa is on its way to Second Miltia."

"That's good, right?" Faith asked, looking to Gaignun. He nodded and she smiled. "It's most probable Mas-Albedo has escaped though. I bet he's figured out already that he cannot use the Y-Data." She turned to Gaignun. "Are you planning to go to Second Miltia?"

"Yes," he nodded, holding her hand tighter. "You're following my every step, Faith."

*** okay, I know this chapter sucked (please don't tell me that already XD) but I had to make Faith rescued, and then the end of Xenosaga 1 had to be added somewhere into the story so it was easiest to add it there. Umm, yeah I know it sucks, and this isn't the end (there's much more to come) so yeah. XD**

**Poupee means Doll in French btw ^^ * (p.s please don't kill me for the scrumy chapter. I might even re-do it XD)**


	8. Utterly Magical

**Chapter Eight –**

**Utterly Magical**

A few hours after the incident and being told she would be going to Second Miltia, a place she didn't think she had visited before in her life, Faith swiftly retreated away from the bridge, unnoticed by her new guardian, if that was what he were to be called. With her quick, silent footsteps she went down to the second floor, wondering where the park had been. Gaignun had explained it all to her just a few days ago, but being quick pessimistic and believing she would never be onboard the Durandle again, Faith hadn't decided to listen to his words. Instead she had just ignored, her mind going off onto something to do with Master. Her feet were soft against the cold floor, stepping slowly as her eyes raced up and down the corridors, wondering where the park was situated. She passed many people who went in their own direction without any trouble, whilst she was beginning to panic. As she glanced back, she couldn't even remember the way back to the Bridge.

The ship was so big; it would be a miracle if even _Gaignun _could find her again.

As she walked, her pace slowing, she knew she should've had some sort of fear in her veins. Just something from the last time she had been a lone without Gaignun and Master had taken her back. But, from his words Gaignun had said he had left her feeling almost completely safe. Besides, Master would probably be too busy being angry at the fact he couldn't use the Y-Data to think of Faith.

Then, her feet almost stopped walking. If he would be mad he would eventually find a twisted way to blame it on Faith; somehow it would be turned onto her, meaning he would be angry. Oh, how terrible! That and the fact she had run away to Gaignun? Even though she had been rescued he would see it as a runaway – a betrayal.

If he were to find her she'd be screwed. No doubt about it.

Her life was in the hands of Gaignun and her own common sense. Finding out what she really was, what the purpose of her being created, would have to wait – all her time and effort would have to be spent keeping herself hidden and away from Albedo. She had to be clever.

As she walked she cracked her fingers, smiling as the bones loosened. She tucked some of her dark pink and red hair behind her ear, straightening out her back. Though she looked quite emotionless, she was thinking about everything and anything. Her eyes were darting around, looking for the Park or something else that would be interesting, and also keeping on guard about Master.

"99 Series Observational Unit?" a voice behind Faith said. The sickeningly common voice made her cringe as her footsteps stopped.

She turned around slowly, her eyes connecting with a smaller girl whose eyes were the exact same standard shade of hers. "Are you the 99 Series?" she asked, seeming to be unsure with herself as her eyes looked Faith up and down.

"Yes, I am," she nodded. She tilted her head. "Can you not tell?"

"I am struggling to," the Realian replied. "I sense traits within you, yet I cannot fully make out an entire 99 Series Observational Unit."

"Well, I can assure you that is what I am," Faith gave her a sad smile. "May I help you?"

"Gaignun sent me to collect you," she answered.

Faith almost gritted her teeth. A second time Gaignun was unable to collect her himself. For some strange, bizarre reason it caused some anger to swell in her gut. So he was willing to do almost anything for her yet he couldn't bring her to him herself? Did he want to find her, or did he always want her to come to him?

She found herself shaking her head. "You can inform Master Gaignun," saying the word Master with a different name in front of it caused a weird sickly feeling to come to her stomach. "Inform him that I wish to stay here. Tell him that I do not want to be collect constantly, like some toy." She sighed deeply, feeling a little bit of sadness. "Tell him if he truly cares for me then he can get me himself."

The Realian stared at Faith for a few moments, wondering how such words came from her mouth. Eventually she nodded, soon walking in the opposite direction without a second glance. Faith sighed deeply and after a few long minutes she continued her search to the park.

* * *

If had been half an hour after meeting the Realian. Faith managed to have found the park and was soon in a dark corner, surrounded by the trees. She leaned her back on the side wall, her skin absorbing the cold that came off it. Her eyes gazed out of the dark window, staring at the many stars dotted luminously against the pitch black. Peacefully she just stayed there, pushing out the sounds of the other people in the background as they walked about, speaking and giggling quietly to the people they were with.

Her body shivered as she stood there, wondering whether or not Gaignun would even bother to appear. But she as she thought that she could feel a strong arm wrapping around her waist from behind. This arm felt so warm, so soft compared to Master's usual metal grip.

The person who stood behind her pulled her close; she could feel her back leaning on their chest. As they breathing, she could feel it rise and fall and then their alluring voice whispered in her ear. "I do care for you."

She felt her cheeks burning as Gaignun held her so close. After a few moments of silence, her just being held by him, he turned her around to face him. His fingers ran through her soft hair without yanking or even pulling a strand. She smiled as he continued to brush her silky hair with his fingers, feeling those usual butterflies emerging in her stomach again. He flicked her chin up, quickly edging his lips towards her pink ones.

Then they touched hers. He kissed her gently, not forcefully like Master had done: he didn't even demand for his tongue to enter her mouth. His hand moved up to her chin, grazing her jaw line as he pulled her close with his arm. She felt her entire body tingling, her cheeks flushing and a strange emotion came into her heart.

As he ran his fingers down her slim body, eventually rested at her waist, she suddenly thought of Master as the strange feeling grew stronger.

'_You slut! You're not capable of feeling love,'_ she remembered him saying one say. _'All that you will be good for is to pleasure a man – that's probably why you were created. What you feel and believe to be love is nothing more then an evil sin.'_

So it wasn't love coursing through her veins as she kissed him?

Quickly, she pulled away from Gaignun, almost slamming her head into the wall as she turned around. She put her face against it, her hands held onto themselves. Soon, she had slid down the wall and was sitting on her knees, her head hung.

"Faith?" he asked, coming to her. He moved onto his knees and put his hands on her shoulders. "I shouldn't have done that, should I? Oh God, what an idiot I am …"

"This is bad," she said, shaking her head. "He said what I feel is a sin."

"What you feel …?" he echoed, his mouth close to her cheek.

"Albedo said that anything to do with love I feel is a sin," she sighed deeply. "He said I was created to … pleasure men … is that why you kissed me? So that I would pleasure you?"

He gasped, his eyes widened. "No, of course not!" his voice was raised. He turned her face to him. "A kiss is a symbol of love, Faith. It's no sin – it's what humans feel. Is that what you feel?"

"I believe so …" she whispered, keeping her eyes to him.

He tenderly put a hand on her burning cheek. He kissed her gently, this time licking her lips asking for entrance in her mouth. Faith nervously parted her lips, wondering whether this all would end well or if Gaignun would take advantage. She felt safe with him and as he brushed his tongue against hers, something she hadn't properly experienced, she realized how right it felt. It wasn't like when Master forced her to kiss him; forcing his unwanted tongue into her mouth, this was truly something. There was something Faith felt for Gaignun; something that made her heart pound and her head fly.

As she reacted to his tongue in the same way, she shut her eyes, wrapping her arms around Gaignun. His fingers stayed on her face, his hand rested of her thigh, making her skin tingle. He pulled away from her after a few moments, looking at her reddened, innocent face. She opened her eyes slowly, shyly looking up to Gaignun. His hand caressed her warming cheek, his lips curled into a smile.

"You're so cute," he smirked.

All she could reply with was a nervous smile. With her finger, she tucked some of her gold locks behind her ear, and then her eyes glazed down to the floor. Never in her life had Faith felt so nervous, yet so happy being in the presence of someone. It was such a strange emotion running through her veins; it caused her cheeks to deepen in their colour.

"You do realize that I am nine years younger then yourself," she began. "And that I am merely a 99 Series Mass Produced Observational Unit, right?"

"It's just a number," he smiled, poking her nose to get her to look at him again. "And you are not a 99 Series Realian: you can't even be a Realian. The 100 Series was unable to detect you properly, yes?"

"That's right," she nodded.

"Well then," he smiled. "Besides, it doesn't matter if you are a Realian or not – your heart, your feelings and your mind are all pure, Faith. You are real."

She smiled, looking deep into his alluring emerald gems. He looked back into her gold ones, and for a few moments it felt like it was only him and her in the world – just themselves.

_When I went to bed that night I lay awake, my eyes staring foreword at the darkened ceiling. In the darkness I could hear those butterflies in my stomach, flying and roaming about, begging to be free and yet I sti__ll was unable to understand it. I had kissed Gaignun, yes, but there was something still that was in my stomach. I find it hard to understand these emotions … I truly do. The most I had ever felt before was pain only because I lived with Master. All that there was to expect was dread and fear. But with Gaignun, there's so much more. There's happiness, hope and all other feelings I cannot yet work out. But I know that they're good ones._

_He had come into the room, slowing opening the door as he did so as not to disturb me. He had no idea that I was lying awake, the sheets covering my almost bare skin. I lay perfectly, my body straight facing the ceiling, my head neatly on the pillow. As he came in, I moved a little, but I don't think he thought anything of it. He moved around the room quietly as he changed into his night ware. I watched the outline of his body moving about in the shadows. He was so graceful, so smooth and perfect with his movements I couldn't take my eyes off him._

_His perfectly slender, yet masculine, body moved with such ease through the shadows, and so silently he was like a ghost. No, he was better then that – he was almost angelic. The only bit of noise that he had made was when he put his suit into the wash basket, and even that I had to strain my ears to hear._

_Unlike I had thought, he slid into the sheets beside me, still unaware of my consciousness. I breathed deeply, making sure my eyes watched carefully. If he looked to me and I kept them open he would know I was awake and that may have been … awkward._

_He turned in the bed, facing me. I quickly shut my eyes just as his headed for my face. Even though I was in complete darkness, I knew he was looking at me. His magical eyes set on my peaceful face, watching as I supposedly slept._

_I don't know what I was thinking but I rolled my body over, facing his. My eyes were still shut, making sure he knew I was still sound asleep and all I was doing was gently stirring as I rested. I felt his fingers tucking my hair behind my ear so that he could get a clearer view of my face. I heard him breathe out, almost like a deep sigh though I couldn't understand why. It wasn't like a sigh Master always did when he was angry: Gaignun hadn't forced the air from his lungs at a fast, furious rate. Instead it was almost like he was happy._

_I found it strange, well I still do, that he had sighed contently. Could a person really feel such happiness that the air inside of them wishes to escape? Perhaps that is what my butterflies are about: perhaps they are a sign that I am so happy I need to sigh deeply in joy._

_The sheets ruffled as he turned around. I could tell he was lying on his back from the amount of movement he had made. Opening one eye I saw that his hands rested under his head, between his fluffy black hair and pillow. His chest was bare and I couldn't help but have a little mental image of Master come into my mind._

_I shivered gently, pushing him away as I continued to gaze at Gaignun who lay close by me. There was an urge, a strange urge that came into my veins as I watched him. I wanted to get so close, feel his skin touching mine and feel his breath close by._

_Before I knew it, I was moving foreword. And before he had a chance to look at me I had my arms wrapped around him, my head resting on his chest. Part of my body lay on him, my legs stayed on the sheets of the bed._

_As I looked up, I saw his blush on his face. Soon, his lips were curled into a soft smile as he brought his arms down, his hand rested on my head gently. I put my ear on his chest, right above where his heart rested. I could feel it pumping gently, something soothing to my own heart. As I lay, leaning on him, I felt his chest rise and fall in a soft movement._

_His fingers ran through my hair, brushing my locks. His other hand came onto his stomach. I glanced back up at him, he was looking happily down to me. The smile hadn't disappeared and when my golden eyes connected with his, he leaned his head down and kissed my head gently._

_I smiled, his head rested back on his pillow. I put my hands onto his chest, my fingers gently stroking his smooth skin. Then I took in a deep breathe and sigh contently just as he had done. The butterflies seemed to have flown away at that point and soon were replaced by a lovely, blissful feeling that made me realize that I was more then happily lying with Gaignun._

_His heart beat was soothing me; it was the only thing I could hear in the dark silence. Each time I blinked my eyelashes brushed his skin, a few times I felt him shiver and it made me smirk._

_After a few long minutes I felt myself drifting off. Never had I felt so peaceful when I was falling into slumber. As I began to sleep, Gaignun put his hand around my waist. I felt so safe, so happy to fall asleep in the arms of someone who truly cared for me and who I truly cared for. It was …_

_Utterly magical._

**Okay, this is another suckage chapter but I needed a contrast to how horrible Faith has been treated before I started the main frame/evil bits of the story back up. ****Hope you enjoy ^^ I don't like writing cute, lovey dovey bits without something horrible XDXD**


	9. Hint of Truth

**Chapter Nine –**

**Hint of Truth  
**

**OOC – **I would like to quickly thank the few people that have constantly reviewed this story – it means a lot that you review every chapter and I thank you so much!~ I'd also like to thank my friends who read it and give me wonderful comments when I speak to them in person – it means a lot, so thanks guys! I'm really happy you're enjoying the story.

* * *

He looked down at his sleeping beauty, unsure of whether to wake her from her slumber. Resting so lightly on his chest, her body was soft against him. With the artificial sunlight that streamed from the gaps in the curtains, he was able to see how attractive she was as she slept. If it wasn't for the slight movement of her chest as she exhaled and inhaled slowly, she would have looked dead. Her pink and red hair shone in the light, just beginning for Gaignun's hands to run through it. Finding himself doing so, he buried his fingers deep into her soft locks, sighing contently as he touched the porcelain girl that lay above him. As he watched, he managed to bring his eyes away from her for a brief moment as he checked the time ticking softly away.

When he saw the arrows pointed to the numbers, he sighed, looking back to Faith. A little sad smile came onto his face as he gently stroked her head. As he did, he spoke with a soft, alluring voice that had a small, saddened edge to it.

"Faith, Faith," he repeated, easing her out of unconsciousness. As she heard her name being called, though the voice was muffled to her ears, she stirred ever so slightly. "Faith, I'm sorry but its time to get up now. Wake up," he whispered soothingly to her ear.

Coming round, she moved, a little content moan left her mouth as she began to feel intone with the world. She turned her body slightly, feeling Gaignun resting underneath her. Her bare arms ran across his body as she opened her eyes, blinking a few times to get used to the sunlight. Her sleepy gems looked up to him, the man that made her heart pump faster then ever: the man who made her cheeks flush a shade of red brighter then the highlights in her hair.

"Good morning," he smiled, running a hand across her warm face. Faith smiled back at him, her smiled shy and timid. "Did you sleep well?"

She nodded, before leaning the side of her head on his chest again, her eyes facing him. "I did, thank you. Did you?"

"Better then I ever had done before," he replied, his fingers returning to play with her soft locks. His eyes wouldn't stop connecting with hers; they wouldn't stop searching into her beautiful gold gems, happy in the silence where he could just stare at her: stare at his beautiful, porcelain girl.

Content, she closed her eyes, feeling herself drift off into another realm of dreams: another deep slumber. Though she was well on her way to sleep, Gaignun stopped her in her tracks by gently leaning down to kiss her eyelids. The new place his lips touched her made her open her eyes as he pulled away from the peck, a little shocked. He replied in a little laugh, putting a hand on her cheek.

"I'm sorry," he said. "We'll be landing in Second Miltia soon, so I cannot have you falling asleep, otherwise we'll be late."

"Okay," she nodded. "Do you want me to get ready for you?"

"In a moment," he smiled, putting a hand on her slender body. "May I ask you to do me a favour whilst we are in Second Miltia?"

"A favour?" she asked, her eyes beaming with curiosity. "What favour?"

"May you have maintenance whilst we are there?" he asked.

Gulping, her eyes looked away from him. She felt her body shiver, Gaignun could feel it himself. He wrapping his arms around her, and then brought her up his body, tucking her head into his neck. His hands ran soothingly down her body. Eventually they stopped around her stomach and he held her possessively close to him. Already he was making hushing noises, knowing she was close to tears.

She wrapped her arms around his body, clinging to him tightly as he held back onto her. As his hands touched her skin, as his breath came onto her head, she wondering whether he was touching a person, or a machine. As she held him, all she could think was that she was a machine – her entire body was fake but surely that wasn't true. She had been branded with the name 99 Series Observational Realian, but she hadn't been branded with what all her sisters shared in common: mechanical abilities. Faith was unable to use a computer and she was unable to connect with any electronically system. She was only able to determine where her sisters were, and that was only because she picked up on peoples patterns well: not because she could detect them or find them out. Like she had realized before, the only thing that made her like her sisters were her golden gems, nothing else.

Perhaps she was no Realian. Perhaps Faith was a normal girl that somehow got mixed up in the entire thing.

The strange this was that when she thought that it all seemed familiar. Were their organs and guts deep under her flesh? Surely 'maintenance' wouldn't be a bad thing. Surely it would open a new door to her, something with the truth.

Eventually, she nodded. "I will."

* * *

Throughout all that had been going on, Faith had gotten separated from Gaignun by her own will. They had landed on Second Miltia, and after continuous pleading and begging, Gaignun had finally handed her with a mobile phone and entrusted her to walk the streets of Second Miltia whilst they waited for her own Maintenance to start. She had been informed Momo's analysis wouldn't commence for a few hours after her own, giving her much time. Dressed in a short, red, skirt, a red shirt with quarter length sleeves and beautiful black lace lining the sides, she looked much like a Lolita Doll. Her hair was straight; another black and red clip was placed in her hair for decoration. Black tights covered her stick thing legs, a few abstract patterns were made on them, creating a beautiful look. Her boots were just underneath her knees, coloured red and black like the rest of her cloths. And, as usual, her wrist was bandaged together with clean material, along with her hands and forehead. Even with them she looked like a stunning doll as she walked down the lit street, holding the light blue phone Gaignun had handed her with a tight grip.

Though she walked alone, the girl more vulnerable to Albedo's attack then she ever had been before, she couldn't care less. Just knowing Gaignun was in the city, in the same place as her made her feel totally, and strangely, safe. With her spare finger, she twisted her hair around it, eyes looking in all directions of the busy city.

As she walked, she looked up to the sky: a beautiful shade of blue. The rays of the sun, the real sun, felt different on her skin to the artificial sunlight she had grown to know. It felt so fresh, so much warmer and real to her skin. The breeze brushed onto her body and even that, something so simple, was welcomed by her with warm thoughts. Another feeling that felt real and crisp to her skin.

Faith had been walking for about half an hour, wishing as she walked in and out of stores and buildings that Gaignun was there with her. He told her that he would have taken her the next day; he told her he would've taken her straight away if he wasn't so busy. Though she thought like a stubborn child, hating how she was unable to his full attention, she nodded like a mature adult, understanding the busy lifestyle he lived. Despite the fact she knew she had been mature to nod, she had been immature to just leave with impatience and demand to see the City that day, rather then the next. There was just something, something in her gut telling her to visit that day, as if it were to be impossible the next. And Faith's gut was always right – she always knew if something bad would happen.

Suddenly, she found herself colliding into a body. She and the stranger had been walking at such a fast pace, she was sent down onto the ground, landing sharply on the ground. Her eyes had shut momentarily, and before they even opened she heard a voice close to her.

"I'm so sorry, ma'am," the calm yet embarrassed voice said.

She opened her eyes, looking ahead of her. A hand was being held down to her, a dark hand that looked strong. Just as she was about to take it, the stranger quickly went down onto his knees, grabbing something that had fallen during her fall. His hand was held out again, yet opened to reveal her blue phone.

"Is this yours?" he asked as she stared at the phone. Eventually she nodded, taking it.

"Yes, thank you," she forced a smile to spread across her blood red cheeks.

Finally, her eyes looked at the face of the stranger. "Chaos?"

He frowned a little, searching her face, particularly her eyes. "Faith?"

"Yeah, it's me," she laughed.

He stood up quickly, holding his hand out for her. She took it happily, using it to help herself stand up. She brushed down her cloths, straightening them out as she did so. After a moment of doing that, her curious eyes returned to chaos. "Didn't you recognise me?"

"Well you look so different," he said, almost embarrassed. "Did Gaignun pick them out for you?"

"Yes," she smiled widely, doing a twirl to show off her outfit properly. "Pretty cloths, aren't they? He's so sweet."

He smiled gently as he looked at her cloths. "He defiantly is taking good care of you."

"Only because of you," Faith smiled gratefully. "Gaignun told me the only reason I am with you is because you collected me. You saved me from Albedo."

Shyly, he smiled. "You don't need to thank me. Gaignun was the one who wished for me to do so; all I did was follow out his orders."

"Maybe so," she said. "But you still did it. You still saved me, chaos."

Like a good friend, she hugged him tightly. He was a little taken back, but soon wrapped his arms around her, hugging her close. Long minutes passed before they pulled away, Faith smiling a little.

"Sorry I crashed into you like that," she laughed. "God, I really should look where I'm going. I'm such a klutz."

"It's alright," he said. "Don't blame yourself. I wasn't looking myself."

She smiled. "Where is Rubedo?"

"Rubedo?" chaos repeated, raising a brow.

"I mean Jr," she shook her head. "Living with Master for such a long time has made me pick up on his habits."

"We were heading for the U.M.N," chaos answered. "I suppose he took a little detour. Where are you heading, Faith? You weren't planning on searching around alone, were you?"

She lifted up her slightly scratched phone. The fall hadn't helped its appearance, but luckily it was still functional. "I got this," she smiled. "Gaignun let me go out for awhile on my own to get some air before my own maintenance."

"You're getting an anaylysis?" he repeated, seeming to be shocked. "Whatever for? You're not a self adjusting model?"

She couldn't help but clench her fists from being referred to as a damn robot. She shook her tense head, before quickly turning around like a child having a tantrum. "I'm going for the rest of the walk. I'll try not to crash into someone else."

Stunned, chaos just watched as she quickly walked off. After a few steps, she turned her head.

"And I don't even think I'm a Realian," she said. Though her voice was quiet, he was able to hear. The last thing she saw on his face was a slightly confused expression, before turning swiftly around.

* * *

The ringing came into her head as she held the phone to her ear. She cradled it gently against her head with her gentle hand, awaiting Gaignun to pick up the phone on his end. She had sat down on the ledge, bathing in the sun's rays. In her hand was a pink cardboard bag: emitting from it was a sweet smell that could make anyone drool.

She heard a click as the phone was picked up, the ringing immediately stopped. Gaignun's alluring voice came from the phone, causing her to smile. "Hello, Faith," though his words were simple, she could feel the pleasure in his voice from her calling him.

"Hey Gaignun," she smiled, feeling her cheeks burn. She loved to use his name. "Are you okay? How are things down there?"

"Fine, perfectly fine," he answered. "How are you? Are you enjoying yourself?"

"Yes," she smiled. "I brought some brownies from Clara's Bakery for you."

"You didn't need to," he denied, though she could tell she had pleased him. "I gave you that money to spend on yourself."

"Well, there's still some left," she laughed. "Besides, you already brought me everything I needed. They're only brownies, Gaignun – not much but they looked so yummy I had to get you some."

He laughed. "Thank you, Faith."

"Don't mention it," she smiled, putting the bag straps on her elbow. She looked down the street, noticing someone watching her with a close eye. She frowned, feeling a sense of awareness come over her. The person seemed familiar, had she passed him before?

As she thought, missing whatever Gaignun was saying to her, she realized she had seen that man a lot throughout her day. His chocolate locks, average height and normal cloths made him hard to spot out from the crowd but as she thought she could remember him. He was behind chaos as she crashed into him, he was at the jewellery store as she looked over the beautiful pieces of artwork, he was sat at the opposite bench as her as she ate a bun earlier. He had been in every shop she had been in, he had been wherever she had been. A flush of fear came over her as she turned her bright eyes away from him, desperate to disappear into the cracks on the ground.

"Faith?" Gaignun said, his voice filled with concern. "Faith, are you there?"

"Has chaos met up with you yet?" she asked.

"No, he's about to arrive soon," he answered. "Your maintenance is about to start, Faith. I need you to come back now, is that okay?"

"Gaignun," her voice suddenly became filled with worry as she held the phone closer, watching the strange man in the corner of her eye. "I'm … being followed."

"Followed?" anger had come into his voice, something not so fierce but shocking. "Are you sure that you are? Faith, are you absolutely sure and your not being paranoid?"

"I'm sure," she nodded. "I'm positive. He's been everywhere. I just noticed him but thinking back he's been where I have been. He's watching me as we speak."

She heard his fist slamming into something in rage, making her flinch. "Dammit, I knew I should not have let you go out on your own. An attractive vulnerable seventeen year old in a busy City – I should have seen this coming! Especially as you're a realian."

Faith sighed: she knew being a Realian could make her more susceptible to rape and murder then even humans were. Even if she believed she was no Realian, the outside told all. People always believed it would be easier to mentally attack a Realian, as they aren't as human. Their emotions aren't as strong, it's easy to manipulate and destroy them, as Faith knew. But surely that strange man could have seen something different with Faith; surely he could have seen she was human.

But, at the end of the day, being a realian or a human didn't matter to a crazy mad man: just as long as he saw a body he wanted, he would take it.

"Gaignun I'm heading back now," Faith said, gaining courage.

"Don't leave that spot," he said with firmness in his voice Faith wasn't used to. About to stand, she obediently stayed where she was. Though he showed demanding like Master did, she could feel love behind his words: Gaignun wanted her to be safe. "I'm sending Jr down there to collect …"

He had frozen in mid sentence and she frowned. Eventually he picked back up, changing it around.

"I'm coming down to collect you," he said. "I'll be coming in the car, so I shouldn't be long. Meet me at the road by the Restaurant."

"Gaignun," she was about to protest but he spoke quickly.

"You're my responsibility," he said softly. "I'm the one who will make you safe. Stay within crowds, Faith and try to keep your distance. I shouldn't be long."

There was a long, awkward pause before he spoke.

"I want you to know I will do anything for you," before she had a chance to reply to his words, he had hung up, leaving her to sit there. Eyes glancing to the side, she saw the man was stood much closer. In fact, he was stood just a few feet to the side of her, lowering his masculine body on the ledge she sat on. He was close enough she could smell the smell of his cologne and see his face clearly. He was a handsome man, a few years younger then Gaignun perhaps, but a few years older then Faith for definite. Biting her lip, she pulled her eyes away from him. In a normal situation she would not have looked at him twice: he was too normal, but because she knew he was following her, his face seemed to be cold and horrifying.

Gracefully, she stood up to her feet, her skirt flowing a little as she did so. Pretending he wasn't there, she wrapped the bag's handles around her fingers, before sorting out her cloths and swiftly walking. Breathing out, she kept herself calm as she saw him stand through the corner of her eye. Her eyes searched left to right, darting from place to place to see where would be the best place to go and where would be the worst. If she wanted to, she could put up a good fight yet she knew she wouldn't win against someone who looked much stronger then Master.

She remembered about Gaignun as she walked down the pathway, heading towards the road, where he would soon be. The way was long, and it seemed there were less and less people. Her eyes darted back to the person who was still there, following her at her heel. Suddenly, she took a turn to her left, going down a smaller pathway, leading in another direction.

She bit her lip suddenly as she came down the path, realizing something – it was empty. Quickly, she turned around, seeing the man leaning on the wall of a building; his lips curled into a menacing smile she knew to read. Gulping, she took a step back, almost stumbling over.

"Who are you?" she demanded her voice strong though her eyes were weak.

"Not going to attack me this time?" he laughed. "Not going to try and destroy me with your weak, feeble powers?"

"What…?" she shook her head. "I think you have me mixed up with someone else …"

"So you lost your memory?" he grinned, the laugh became mocking. "Oh Faith, I knew this would happen. You're just scared, aren't you? Where have you been all these years? Your darling Mother misses you much …"

"Mother?" she repeated, suddenly feeling a knot appear in her stomach from anger. Why, she couldn't understand but the anger was strong. She found herself clenching her fists, which the stranger picked up on.

"Oh mother truly does," he smiled. "Sister."

"Sister?" she growled. "Don't you dare call me sister!! You have no right to!"

She froze. _'Why did I say that? Why did I snap?!'_

"Your boyfriend is here," he said, though he from where they were neither of them would even be able to tell if Gaignun had arrived. "He'll get impatient and he'll worry because of what you said about me on the phone."

Faith stared at him as he continued to speak. "Try to remember Faith, for the sake of your family. It shouldn't be too hard: just think of the sound you love to hear the most."

He laughed menacingly like Master did. "The sound of bones crackling: the sound of flesh squirting out red blood."

In a flash, he had disappeared, leaving Faith to stand there, completely stunned and dazed. What the hell had happened? Who the hell was he?

After a few long minutes she conducted herself and soon walked down the pathway, towards the Restaurant. At the edge of the road, stood leaning against a jet black car with a look of pure worry on his face was Gaignun. His eyes softened when he saw Faith coming towards him, though she could see an edge of anger within them.

"Hello," she whispered with a dry throat as she got to him.

Like a gentleman, he opened the back door for her to get in. In silence she went inside the cool car, sitting down and strapping herself in. She placed the bag on the side, watching as Gaignun came to the front of the car. He opened the door and leaned in, switching on the automatic driving. He imputed their destination before getting out, closing the door and getting into the back seat by Faith.

He put his hands in his lap when he had strapped himself down; glancing at Faith as the car began to drive. She had picked up the small, pink bag and held it tightly with her fingers. Her eyes were gazed down to the floor, her mind deep in wonder.

"You were late," he mumbled.

"I had a bit to walk," she replied, her voice shaking. "Are you mad?"

"Of course not," he smiled, flicking up her chin as he did so that her head wasn't hung. "I would never be mad, I was worried, yes. But not mad."

"I'm sorry I made you worry," she smiled as he did, and then put the bag in his lap. "I brought you them."

He looked at the bag she had thrust upon him, the smile widened. "Thank you, Faith."

His hand was put gently on her shoulder as he leaned in, pecking her gently on the forehead. "That was very kind of you."

She smiled timidly, feeling her forehead tingling from where his lips had touched her skin. "It's no big deal."

"Did you see that man again?" he asked his voice quite serious.

She froze, and he tilted his head to the side. After ten long seconds she looked at him, her face emotionless and unreadable. "No."

"Not at all?" he asked.

"Not at all," she said. "I didn't see him."

* * *

"I'm scared," she whispered in Gaignun's ear as she was sat down on the chair at the U.M.N. The room was small; there were a few important people in there, working on machines. Gaignun held tightly onto Faith's hand, squeezing it gently.

"Don't worry," he smiled. "I'm right here."

Something was strapped around Faith's wrist, hooking up to a machine near her. The black headed doctor frowned as the screen remained blank. "No connection?"

Faith watched as he took a small wire from the screen, on the end was a little pin. The man came over to her, the pin in hand. "I'm just putting this into your hand: it shall not hurt."

Her fingers wrapped tightly around Gaignun's hand as the pin was placed into the other, sticking into her vein. It didn't hurt, but it made her cringe: why did she have such weird maintenance? As they looked, the screen flashed into life, a few symbols appeared, soon to be followed by more. The doctor watched, his eyes scanning across the strange code, understanding each and every little symbol.

"Well, Master Gaignun," he began, his voice almost breathless. "You do not seem to have a 99 Series Realian on your hands here."

"What do you mean?" he asked, looking at the screen with a face of confusion.

"It's as if," he shook his head. "Someone placed Realian capabilities within her, as if it were to cover up her human traits. Like her eyes; they were not originally gold. She is partially Realian, but partially human." He turned around, looking at Faith. "May I scan you, to identify whether you have a chip within you?"

She nodded, unable to speak. Did all this mean that she was human? As he brought out a hand sized machine, running it across her body, she was deep in thought. She couldn't remember being human, she could only remember being a Realian: a Kirschwasser.

There was a beeping that took her from her thoughts. The doctor had stopped at the top of her left arm, above a scar. "There is a chip here. It is what has given Faith Realian traits, and removed her human ones."

"I don't have Realian traits," she said. "I cannot connect with technological things, and I am defiantly not capable of anything Realian's can do."

"I don't know," he said, shaking his head. "I've never come across anything like this, but I know for certain you were born a human. That is why you have everything humans have."

"It doesn't make sense," Gaignun interrupted. "You're telling me someone placed a chip inside of Faith to pretend she was a Realian?"

"Yes," he nodded. "For what purpose, I do not know, but someone wanted Faith's true identity to be hidden."

"I did something terrible," she whispered, feeling tears come to her eyes. "That's why I've been made like this. I know that, I know I was bad."

"Faith," Gaignun pecked her forehead. "Whoever did this was probably trying to help – you did nothing wrong," he grinned. "And think – you're not truly a Realian, it is great isn't it?"

"Great …"

**Okaaayyy …. Nother suckaage one, but oh wells xD**


	10. Back In Hell

**Chapter Ten –**

**Back In Hell**

There were no words to describe the immense fear running through her veins as she groggily awoke. Thoughts and feelings were so disorientated, so disfigured in her mind even that caused her to panic – never had she awoken with such confusion in her mind. Never had she awoke with the sense of fear striking through her body so sharp, so crisp it was causing her to already shake. There was something to fear, even before she awoke: there was something to be frightened of, her mind was telling her that as she lay unconscious, begging her never to awake. Yet she had done: Faith had awoken, pulling herself into the most bloodthirsty, most horrifying nightmare ever.

Her senses slowly came to her, a metallic taste was in her mouth, and a horrible stench lingered in her nostrils. There was some liquid in her throat; as she breathed in the substance came into her lungs causing her to frantically cough out, feeling the liquid splatter from her mouth. Her coughing continued for long minutes before she even had her eyes open. Before she even computed where she was, what was going on, she was already choking. The terrible metallic taste grew stronger on her tongue as she continued to cough up the liquid that seemed to never end. It just wouldn't stop, it wouldn't stop.

Trying to pull her arms to her mouth, she cried out as a sharp pain shot through her wrists. Wisely, she stopped fidgeting, feeling a liquid slowly running down her skin from her bound wrists. The liquid in her throat finally stopped throwing itself out of her body, giving her a chance to breathe and conduct herself. Her eyes were firmly shut, her mind was awake. She couldn't bear to open her lids, frightened of whatever she may see. Her body felt sore, though she could feel the soft sheets of a mattress underneath her. As she moved a tiny bit she could feel her ankles were also bound to the bed, with a soft silk cloth she could feel against her skin.

Slowly, she brought up the courage to open her eyes. The last few hours, days, or even weeks were such a blur. The last memory she had was of Gaignun: his body stood in front of hers protectively until it was knocked away by someone so strong, so alluring and so psychotically angry: the memory of his rage was forever burned into her mind, in a way that gave her more fear when she thought of it. Her heart pounded quickly, trying to escape her flesh as her eyes widened to investigate.

The world was dark, but she could just about see the outlines of familiar, un-soothing objects. Her eyes came a dresser, which she had been thrown against resulting in her first concussion and head trauma; her gold eyes looked weakly to the closet she remembered being thrown into as her body pumped the blood from in because of a deadly wound he had given her. Shuddering, she pushed the remains of those memories from her mind, focusing on what was going on now. She was there; she was in his hands, but how? Why? How did it all happen? And … she shuddered violently: what was he planning?

In the eerie silence that seemed to go on forever, she felt her breathes were shaking. Patiently, she waited for Master to return, dreading what would happen to her. A swift glance down at herself showed a few cuts her and there. Her chest was in pain as she breathed in and out; indicating Master had pushed her into something or pushed his fists into her. That could explain the liquid that she chocked from her mouth. It had been blood. A closer look at her chest showed the amount of blood she had chocked up, staining her cloths Gaignun had given her.

"Gaignun …" she mumbled, her voice weak as her eyes gazed upwards at the ceiling.

If it wasn't for the sharp, cutting item used to bound her wrists to the bed, or for the aching pain on her chest, she would've felt almost … comfy. Lain out neatly, the sheets still softly under her, it was al cosy. But this added to the fear: Master was trying to elude her, trying to put up a fake illusion of what he was going to do to her.

Blinking, her body began to feel weak. Her eyelids were heavy as she drifted back into unconsciousness, into a deep slumber and she just prayed she wouldn't awake back in the nightmare.

Awakening again, the taste and stench of blood was much stronger then before. Pain was shooting throughout her body; the stinging was so strong she cried out, feeling tears staining her cheeks as they left her eyes. She tried to move her wrists but they were still bound. As she opened her eyes, a hand was quickly placed over them.

"Hush now, poupee," the horrifying voice she wished not to hear whispered. "This won't hurt. Relax; accept the punishment for your sins."

There was something, a blade, which suddenly tore through her flesh. She felt the blade scrap across her stomach, hearing it tear her cloths. Her back arched in pain, she whimpered and cried as the blade left her skin; Master's hand covered her eyes, bounding her head to the mattress.

"Let me go," her frail voice cried. Her breathing was fast; her tears were dampening his hands. How many other cuts had he given her? Her body felt wet from her blood. It didn't seem like there was a single part of her flesh that didn't sting or hurt. Her heart was pounding faster then it had done before, and she felt the return of some blood in her mouth, though she swallowed it back down, cringing as the liquid ran down her throat.

"Maybe we should have a look at what is underneath these sickeningly cute cloths …" he said, laughing manically.

"No, don't!!" she almost screamed, the blood threw from her mouth as she did so.

He laughed again at her pleading and bleeding. Finally, he took away his hand, only so that she was able to see his expression as he began to start what he wanted. What she couldn't control.

He brought the knife to her chest, just above where her cloths starting. She prayed he would stab her; she wanted him to stab him then and there rather then do what he would do. Half of her believed her prays would go answered, and her heart sunk as the blade swiftly ran through her fabrics, tearing her cloths in one swift movement. She squirmed and squealed when her bloody porcelain body was on show to his eyes.

Well, her once porcelain body. Cuts were randomly dotted her and there, the blood was wet still, showing he hadn't done them too long ago. She cringed as he removed her cloths, slowly too – making sure the show would go on longer. He wanted her to feel as much pain, as much suffering as he could make her feel. Besides, he had waited a long time to do this to his poupee, so why not lengthen it out a bit?

"Stop it," she begged as her body was full in view, her cloths thrown somewhere onto the floor.

A devious smile was plastered on Master's face as he leaned onto the bed. He leaned his clothed body on top of her sore, tore one. His leg was placed between hers, a hand wrapped behind her back, holding her as close to him as possible. She shivered as his lips touched hers; hers instantly sealing to stop him from kissing her properly.

'_Only Gaignun is allowed to kiss me …'_ she thought as a tear ran down her face. Suddenly, his tongue pushed into her mouth, noises of no left the back of her throat as her mouth was intruded. She squirmed and wriggled, but his grip around her was so strong she couldn't move much. She was trapped in the arms of him, with absolutely no escape.

After a few moments, he finally stopped kissing her. His mouth worked on her jaw line, slowly coming down to her neck. His pecks were soft, though as his lips lowered he brought in his teeth. She moaned as he nibbled her skin. He came to her breasts, pecking them with soft kisses, almost like a lover would. But the second he came to her nipples, he bit down causing her to scream.

"Stop it!" she yelled, wishing for the aid of Gaignun. As she tried to pull her wrists free, she felt another sharp pain as another cut was created.

"Be careful," he mumbled, nibbling at her painfully; making her whimper. "That barbed wire is right across your wrist: one unwanted move may cause in your death."

With horror on her face, she stayed still, dreading what would be coming. She shut her eyes tightly, hoping she could just blur it all out, forgot and pretend it all wasn't happening. She focused her mind on the last few hours, forcing herself to remember: to remember how she managed to get back into his hands, how she managed to get where she wished she would never be.

**Okay, sucky chapter. The next one is going to start off exactly where Chapter Nine had left off, I wanted a little sense of mystery/bad stuff before all that happened, tho I think its totally crap XDD.**


	11. Cannibal of Vienna

**|| Chapter [Eleven] ||**

**Cannibal of Vienna**

**Comments – **Alright, I totally regret putting up Chapter Ten, but I'm not sure I want to change it. This chapter is going straight from Chapter Nine, so that you know. This is meant to be the recollection of Faith's memories before the Albedo part that happened, so that you get a clear idea of what had gone on during the Dive and all other things like that. Also, it is so that you know how Albedo got a hold of her. Also, Faith's personality is changing due to her past and her Realian chip given to her.

* * *

Silence. It draws. Draws on and on, with a feeling that it will never end. As I stare foreword, Gaignun's arm wrapped tightly around my waist, silence has taken over. Yet I'm enjoying this silence, with him in my presence. He's holding onto me so tightly, I swear he wants to keep me for himself. He owns me; I can feel it with his grip. But I don't mind – I'm his: I belong to Gaignun Kukai, the sweetest, most amazing man in the entire world. But as I stare upwards into his sparkling emerald gems, a sickening feeling comes into my stomach. It's nothing strong, it's no where near as strong as the emotion of love I feel for him, but its there – it's noticeable. It's not him who is sickened, it is me. I'm sickened by the sweet why he looks at me; I am sickened by the kindness he is giving me. A part of me wishes to push him away, scream and yell at him. A part of me wishes to see him wither down and cry: I want to break him. I want to toy around with his emotions, I want to play with him like a ragdoll. My fists clench as I feel these emotions.

He can tell. His grip is loosening and his eyes are confused.

What am I doing? Why am I thinking this? It's horrible, I'm a horrible person. I'm pushing it away, I'm pushing all these feelings away but I'm struggling. It's like having an emotional battle with myself, yet I don't know who 'myself' is. His grip is tightening around my waist; my small body is being pulled against his strong one. A feeling emits through my body as he holds me close; it's disappearing. The feeling that came inside me is going away, and my once tense body is now relaxing as I breathe in his scent. I'm staying like that, my mind wondering off on its own accord: wondering whatever made me feel such emotions of sickness and almost hatred.

Seeming to have sensed the thoughts inside of Faith, Gaignun pulled his arm away from her, breaking the contact for a split second before re-contacting her by wrapping his arm tightly around her body. With soft strength he pulled her body to his, tucking his head into her hair as he pulled her head to rest against his chest. Her thoughts had immediately broken from his movement, and she nuzzled him gently, smiling contently as she did so.

"You're a very thoughtful person," he smiled, wrapping a small chunk of her hair around his fingertip. Her locks were silky against his skin. "You may speak to me, you know?"

"I know," her muffled voice replied. The first parts of her words were soft, but when she continued after a small breathe her voice was ice cold. "But I doubt you wouldn't be happy with what I was thinking …"

He froze, a frown set on his face from hearing her stunningly cold tone. "Faith?" he almost whispered as a new set of emotions from her ran through his body. But just as soon as these emotions appeared, they had disappeared leaving her warm aura floating into his body.

Innocently, she lifted her head, looking at him with her beautiful gold eyes. "Yes?" It was as if she hadn't noticed her tone or even what she had said.

"Never mind," he said, tucking her head back into his chest. "Momo shall be taking her dive soon. Can I trust you to act reasonably and not harm her?"

"Of course," she smiled, forcing a thought from her head. "I would never harm Momo," she held back a strange snicker as a second, evil, thought came to mind.

"Thank you," he smiled, holding her possessively close. "She isn't as strong as you and I'd rather she wouldn't get harmed."

"Don't worry, Gaignun," she assuredly said. "I would never harm my own sister."

She suddenly bit down on her lip. _'Don't you call her your sister, you damn stupid girl!!'_ she hissed to herself in her thoughts. Her white teeth pushed down on her lip again, causing her to squeal as a sharp pain shot through her lips. In a split second she felt the red liquid run down her chin, a drip went onto Gaignun's shirt as she quickly pulled away. His eyes looked down at her, shocked at her sudden movement, and then they widened at the blood running down from her bottom lip.

"Faith!" he gasped, his arms pulling away from her.

"It's just a cut," she muttered, wiping her lip with the back of her hand, holding back the tears that were threatening to betray her eyes. Fiercely, she pulled herself from Gaignun's reach, moving to the glass window where she was able to watch Momo be prepared for her analysis.

Reflected in the glass, Faith was able to see the faint outline of Gaignun's ghostly reflection. His arms slowly moved to his sides, his expression somewhat confused with his eyebrows narrowed and his emerald eyes set on her. He stood still as he always did, trying not to say or do anything. Or maybe not trying at all – it most likely came naturally to the cool and collective Gaignun Kukai: it came naturally for him to seem emotionless. She breathed out deeply, annoyed at herself for being so rude. She sucked the blood from her lip as she stared foreword, at nothing at all. If she had ever pulled away from Master without a word; ever seemed so rude, she would have gotten beat. She knew it wasn't right to be quite so rude and childish but she couldn't stand to be held by someone who loved her dearly when she had all these dark thoughts. Faith didn't want Gaignun getting into her head either; she didn't want the slightest chance of him finding out what she had been thinking, though she knew it was so untrue. She didn't want to hurt Gaignun; she wanted to make him happy.

"Hello chaos," she spoke quietly as she saw him approach; her eyes had caught his reflection in the glass. His white hair stuck and yellow clothing stuck out the most in the reflection, but she could just about see his turquoise eyes looking down at her curiously.

"Hello," he greeted once stood next to her: his arm barely an inch away from hers. Faith didn't look at chaos; rather her eyes stared at Gaignun's reflection. He had turned around, moving over to a computer screen, seeming to be unaffected by Faith's strange behaviour though she knew he was. She could feel his mind working.

'_No matter how much you try, Gaignun,'_ she thought. _'Your emotionless body cannot hide your conscious. I can hear your brain working, the ticking of it as you think. You're working, thinking, fast like clockwork. Unstoppable.'_

"Are you feeling okay?" chaos softly asked, flicking some of her hair from her cold face.

Faith stared at Gaignun's reflection, though stared yet again at nothing at all. Her skin shivered as chaos brushed her hair away, the tip of his finger moving smoothly against her skin, tickling her like a soft feather.

"I'm feeling fine," she answered, her voice as soft as his. "Are you?"

"Yes, thank you," he smiled.

"Ever heard of Robert Ackermann?" Faith suddenly asked, turning her head to him; her attention fully on chaos as she stared at him with thoughtful eyes.

"Robert Ackermann?" he repeated, raising a brow.

In the corner of her eye, she saw Gaignun turning his head, a brow raised as he stared at Faith.

"The Cannibal of Vienna," she said. "An old murderer; a cannibal."

"N-no, I haven't heard of him," chaos' shaky voice replied. He seemed to turn pale as she spoke, obviously uncomfortable with the conversation she was about to begin.

"He murdered his roommate, you know?" she said, her eyes devious as she let her lips curl upwards into a smirk. "He was in a mental hospital, crazy little guy. He was just nineteen, the same age as myself when he murdered. He murdered in the hospital, where he was meant to be getting help. Robert didn't mean to, God I doubt he meant to. The two had a fight, over a porno video if you could believe it."

She leaned close to chaos as she spoke. "He beat up his roommate, Josef. Surprisingly, the nineteen year old was able to beat up the forty-nine year old. Believing he was still alive, Robert went back to his room, cooked, ate, read a little bit as you do and then went to a peaceful, innocent sleep. I feel for the guy, don't you? Such an innocent child he was …"

She sighed deeply as he devious yet saddened eyes looked up into chaos' almost surprised ones. She could feel Gaignun's gaze on her face, as he stared at her with confused and shocked eyes.

"When he woke up, I expect he was surprised to find him dead," she sighed. "Wouldn't you feel so shocked, so heartbroken that you had murdered someone, chaos?"

"W-why yes," he nodded, hardly able to find his voice.

"God knows if Robert was though," she sniggered. "His actions were those of delight. The young teen had eagerly wished to have a body to experiment on all his life and finally he had his chance. He cut the mans body from groin the throat, and with his bare hands he explored the gooey insides of the man he murdered. His fingers roamed through every part of his body, wishing to know more, his mind curious to find out about it."

Chaos shivered as she continued. "Two days later, he told the cleaner to call the police. He admitted his deeds and fully explained what had happened. Unfit, he was unable to go to Jail, so he stayed under constant care of the mental hospital. He studied Medicine, you know? He wished, oh how he wished he could be a surgeon to fulfil his lives dream, yet everyone kept calling him a monster."

She brought her face closer to chaoses. "Would you name the man a monster, chaos? He was so curious, so involved with the human body, who could blame him for experimenting on it? He hadn't killed him on purpose, so why not? Could he be branded a monster?"

"What is your point …?" chaos whispered his throat dry.

"Faith!" Gaignun almost yelled as he grabbed her shoulder sharply.

She turned her head quickly; the devious and slightly maddened emotion in her eyes had disappeared, only to be replaced by her usual look of frightened innocence. He pulled her away from the stunned chaos, taking her to the side of the room; his hand firm on her shoulder. He pulled her body close to hers, and again they found themselves in their own little bubble, forgetting about the world as they spoke.

"What was that all about?" he asked, his voice low.

"I was just asking about the Cannibal of Vienna," she whispered, her eyes wanting to look away yet not wanting to at the same time. "Why? Was it wrong?"

"Yes it was," he almost hissed. His voice caused her to flinch, but soon his arm was around her waist, his eyes soft. "Please don't speak about murderous things like that, Faith. I do not believe it to be your nature."

"I was curious," she whispered. "Robert hadn't really done anything – he was so innocent. He was only curious."

"No," Gaignun shook his head. "There is no exception when it comes to murder. The man had no right to destroy the body of that man."

"He was curious," she repeated, her eyes shinning with desperation. "He was …"

_I wanted to say more. I couldn't remember how I knew of Robert, but he was forever burned into my mind, a part of me wherever I would go. For as long as I've thought, Robert has been part of me but never have a thought of him so deeply as I did then. My mouth opened, about to say more when the sound of an alarm came on, filling the room with noise. In a few minutes, the girl, Momo was being leaked for the Y-Data: Master had planted another trap inside of that stupid 100 Series. A furious rage overcame me as I stood there, watching as the commotion happened. People were worrying for her as she took away her own memories, and I couldn't help but be pleased with this. The girl was killing herself and it made me more then happy. Though I knew I was no realian, that who I believed to be my father was not, I was happy his precious little girl was dying. I was happy that the stupid girl that had put my 'sisters' in danger with Master was deleting herself. But then, all of it stopped. I wasn't able to understand what was going on, but soon her Mother came running into the room, trying to resuscitate her daughter. I wanted her to die! My hands were clenched, my heart was pounding as soon Gaignun was wrapped his arms around me, calming me down with hushes._

_He knew. He knew I was thinking darkened thoughts, surely. God, I'm such a monster… What am I? Who am I …? Until I realized I was not a proper Realian, I never had thoughts like this._

Before Faith knew it, the group Shion, Jr, chaos and Ziggy were preparing to do an Encephalon dive within Momo. Though Faith hated Momo, she was curious to join in. The memories of Jr would be shown, meaning she might be able to learn about Master and Gaignun: understand their past a little more. Her curious gems looked up to Gaignun, wide.

"I want to go," she pleaded. "Please, please let me go."

"But you …" he shook his head. "It's too dangerous Faith."

"I can protect her," chaos' voice came through the speakers. He looked at them through the window, smiling gently as he did so. "She will be safe with me, I can promise you."

He paused, looking down at his porcelain doll he cared so much about. A deep sigh escaped his lips, his eyes shut as he pulled her close to him. "Take care of yourself, okay?" he whispered in her ear, his breath tickled her skin. "If anything goes wrong, I'll be in there as soon as I can."

His hand slid inside of her pocket, making her shiver. Something cold slipped from his fingers in her pocket; something he gave her. For a second he kept his hand in her pocket, though he didn't need to. Looking up to him, she saw him blush as he pulled his empty hand from her pocket, smiling a little as he did so. "That's in case you get in trouble. It works when you push the button."

Faith nodded, and smiled. "Thanks. I'll be okay though, I promise."

* * *

She fumbled the red glasses between her fingers as everyone else placed them on their faces. She stared at the unfamiliar item with curious eyes, before feeling an arm on her wrist, pulling her head to look up.

"Just put them on," chaos smiled. "It won't hurt."

Obediantly, Faith slipped with red glasses on her face, smirking a little as she did so. Twirling, she half spun around, facing the glass. Gaignun was watching her closely and she did a large salute, making his serious face turn to a happy smile.

"See you in a bit, Sir!" she smiled, straightening her posture.

"See you soon, Faith," he grinned. "Are you sure you'll be okay? It's not too late to say no."

"Hmm …" Faith playfully put a finger on her torn lip, pretending to think. Then she shook her head, smiling widely. "Too late to say no! I'm in the mood now, Gaignun, I'm not backing down. I have to do this. Really."

"If you say so …" he said.

Faith nodded again, her eyes playful as she spun around, her back to him. She breathed deeply as the world began to spin, her mind felt dizzy as she was drawn inside of the Encephalon. Her heart pounded as she held her hands together, patiently waiting for the dizzy spell to pass: her eyes were shut.

**Comments –**

Okay, crappy chapter and crappy chapter end but OH WELL.

May I point out that Robert Ackermann is indeed a real man? Yes, he murdered exactly the way I had described in the Year 2007 at the age of 19 years old. He killed his roommate, Josef Schweiger on August 26th, 2007. They had been arguing over a porno video and a missing cigarette lighter that belong to Robert. He had found the video in Josef's possession and in anger the two men had a fight, Robert unfortunately and unknowingly gave him a devastating blow to the head. In the morning when he hadn't seen his roommate, he assumed he was sleeping off a hangover. Later that day he went to check up on him, found him dead yet was not alarmed by the death. Instead he was fascinated. Fact's I have used, like the fact he cut his body from groin to throat are true. He phoned a cleaner two days later, requesting her to phone the police. He had not actually eaten his roommate, rather he tasted him as an experiment, though when the police arrived Josef's brain and tongue had been placed on a plate. It is true that to this day Robert is in a Mental Hospital, studying Medicine in the hopes of becoming a surgeon. He is mentally instable, though he is taking medication. I read about him a few days ago and his story has made me quite curious. XD Links to him and Faith will soon be explained in later chapters, so don't worry! XDXD Sorry I made it so damn confusing.

Oh and Robert murdered in Vienna, Austria.


	12. Death Wish

**|| Chapter [Twelve] ||**

**Death Wish**

How beautiful, yet how eerie it was. The lawn freshly cut, leaving a smell of grass to linger in her nostrils, and the sun beaming down from the blue sky: less then three clouds hovered around, making the sky look magnificent. Even the family home was inviting, with its white walls, and crystal clear glass windows: it seemed like the perfect family lived with its walls. Yet, though there was all of this, Faith couldn't help but feel uneasy. As her eyes looked away from the building, she felt nothing but emptiness. This world that she was stood in was empty, nothing more then an illusion created by a machine. Though that was strange enough, the creepiest part was that she _felt_ real. Everything _looked_ how it should look, even if it seemed a little too perfect: it was there. Her feet were being pulled to the ground by gravity, her hair was being gently brushed by the breeze and her eyes were staring at a home that if she were to put her hand against it, she was sure it would be there. Everything she was experiencing at that moment in time was real: even the people she had known for a little bit were around her. They were blinking, breathing; their hearts pumping their blood around their body even as she thought.

She felt chaos' gaze fall upon her shoulder: his usually melancholy look plastered against her, with his eyes deep in thought. She stood there for a few moments as Jr spoke to that Realian she hated: the 100 series. Having put up with his gaze long enough, however, she turned around to him. Just as her mouth opened, her gold eyes gazed to him only to find he had turned around; facing something entirely different. She paused; had he not been staring? A shiver ran up her spine. Then who had?

A fresh sound of childish footsteps distracted her from her thoughts. Quickly turning her head back to the house, she saw three boys running into the home: one looking exactly identical to Rubedo, the other with black hair and another with stunning white. Letting out a squeaky gasp, Faith took a step back, covering her pale mouth with her fingers. "Was that …?"

"Phantoms," a deep, serious voice behind Faith said.

Turning her head, she saw the tallest member of the group looking down at her; his blue eyes set deep into hers. She remembered his name just about: Ziggy, or Ziggurat 8: a cyborg.

"Illusions created by the Encephalon," he continued. Faith's eyes turned to chaos, asking him silently whether he was telling the truth or not.

Taking a step foreword and smiling broadly, chaos nodded. "Yes, that's right. Nothing but past memories being projected. They cannot see, nor hear us. They aren't living."

Faith nodded, not totally convinced at her safety. Had her eyes deceived her? Was that none other then her Master, at a much younger age? Gulping, she took a step foreword after everyone else had made their way to the porch. She wished to spend this time alone, though as stubborn as he was, chaos hung back, awaiting her to join him. No, stubborn was defiantly not the word: he was being protective, as annoying and stupid as Faith thought it to be. When he watched her with his lucid, blue eyes, she could see them covered in curiosity. Though he didn't want to admit it, he was curious. He was curious of this little "Realian" he was meant to be protecting. He was curious of the Cannibal she had spoken about before; Faith defiantly could sense this and as she stood just an inch from him, she couldn't help but snigger ever so slightly.

Eyebrows narrowed at her snigger, chaos looked at her. His hand was moved two inches from his side, showing he was about to gently push her back and escort her into the house, but he had frozen, torn between whether to ask her what it was about or not. Flicking her hair back casually, Faith raised a brow, acting breezy and collected.

"Are you okay, chaos?" she asked him gently.

"Yes," he nodded, finally bringing himself to touch her back. Gently, he pushed her, indicating for her to go inside. Faith walked quickly; fast enough for her to get away from his fingers.

Warmth, love and joy were all the emotions that should've been plastered into this house. It was homely; a beautiful and almost perfect place to bring up a child, and Faith knew in reality, in the past, it had been warming. She knew someone had took care to clean the furniture; to paint the walls in the colour they were and to create a perfect home for their child. Though she knew this, it felt cold: the Encephalon dive had caused everything that once to have been reality to be eerie and fake. Walking into the family room, her eyes gazed left to right, yet she felt awkward eyeing up someone else's home. She didn't want to travel deep into the house, for many reasons: one including the fact _Master_ could be lingering about. Her fingers slid into her pocket, feeling something cold against her skin. She dug deeper, fishing something cold as ice and smooth as silk from her pocket.

"What the-"pulling the item closer to her face, her eyebrows narrowed. "A pocket knife? He expects me to defend myself with a damn pocket knife?"

It was a beautiful piece of weaponry he had given to her. It was smooth and metallic, painted a light blue, almost white shade. Abstract patterns made in an ice blue colour decorated the sides, with a small, dark blue, four leaf clover in the centre. On one end of the knife was a small button, which with a small push would reveal the deadly blade underneath the beautiful decoration. Not even bothering to give the weapon much thought, Faith groaned as she slipped it back into her pocket, noticing chaos yet again staring at her with his beady, curious gems.

"Yes?" she asked; her tone sharp.

"That weapon can do much more then you think," he smirked a little, as if she was missing out on something with her childish, almost, tantrums. "In the right hands of course."

"What is that supposed to mean?" Faith asked, a little bit of anger emitting from her. Chaos casually laughed as he placed a hand on her shoulder.

"It's nothing bad," he smiled. "Don't worry about it."

Not sure what to say, Faith headed for the stairs. Just about to take her fist step, something that ran past her caused her to jump fiercely. Her balance was lost for a few seconds, but she managed to reach up for the banister of the stairs: supporting her from falling. Her feet quickly moved so that she stood up properly; in a split second she had caught herself and was able to see the phantom running up the stairs quickly, without a second glance to her. Those glowing purple eyes; that white hair … it stuck in her mind.

For the last few days she had felt nothing but joy from being away from Master. She had felt safe, without a care or worry in the world. Faith knew she was safe: she knew Gaignun would be there for her, but once sharp glance at the man, even the child version, sent all those horrible emotions of fear spinning around in her head, soon running throughout her body. Those o-so familiar cold feelings came running back to her, so quickly as if someone had slapped her across the face. She was frozen for a split second, unable to speak and even unable to breathe. Soon she began to breathe deeply, feeling anger towards herself. Had she really been this frightened of him all along?

'_It's stupid,'_ she thought to herself. _'You're honestly scared of a damn phantom? A fake; an illusion. He's not even your height and you're frightened – Fai, he's at least three inches shorter then you, much weaker at this point too. Stop being frightened. He cannot even see you.'_

"_Faith, are you okay?"_ Gaignun's voice came in loud and clear from the real world beyond the Encephalon, causing her to pull away from her thoughts. She felt the warmth of chaos' hand on her shoulder and the world seemed to awaken again. Slowly, she took her hand from the banister, looking down to the floor. The others had gone upstairs. Her ears could just about hear them speaking in muffled voices.

"I'm good," she answered quickly. "Just a little stunned from seeing … _him._"

"_Nothing will happen to you,"_ he promised her. After the moment of silence, he groaned deeply. _"Damnit … I shouldn't have let you go there. You're frightened aren't you?"_

"No I'm not!" Faith snapped. Though she managed to show anger in her tone, she was unable to hide the shock she had gained from Gaignun's perfect thought. He was one hundred percent right.

There was a long silence, before Faith sighed, realizing how wrong she had been to snap. Biting her lip gently, she forced a small smile. "I'm sorry Gaignun. But don't worry – I'm okay."

"_Faith-"_ before having a chance to finish, she had cut him off.

"I'm _fine_ Gaignun," she assured. "Now come on, haven't you got work to do?"

As the phantoms ran down the stairs, she held back her flinch as Master ran into her eyesight. His purple gems looked to her, yet looked straight through her: he couldn't see her as he passed. Just as she was about to turn around, she noticed another phantom following close behind: short, jet black hair and bright emerald eyes. A younger Gaignun. Her eyes widened in curiosity; her body began to follow the phantom out the door, hearing chaos' footsteps following hers.

Speeding outside, Faith just caught the younger Gaignun disappear into a beautiful teleportation device, which still hung around: begging for her to join. With different lights emitting from the floor; from blues to pinks to light purples, Faith couldn't help but be drawn to it, not just because the younger version of the man she loved had entered it. Her feet had quickly moved her body to the centre of the lawn, stopping in front of it: letting her eyes look at it for a few moments.

"Hey, Faith," chaos' voice called. "Wait up."

Turning her head, she could see chaos running up to her from the porch: the rest of the group were just coming out of the house. Biting her lip, she looked back: curiosity was surely getting the better of the girl, and though she knew she shouldn't have felt so intrusive of Gaignun's past, she couldn't help but take a step foreword: her body entering the circle on the ground, soon to be surrounded by the beautiful lights: her eyes gently shut.

* * *

When her eyes reopened, she heard a terrified voice enter her ears. Something so scared, so frightened she couldn't help but feel immediate pity for whoever was speaking. For a split second it took her head and eyes to focus on what was going on, and then her mouth breathed a deep, airy gasp: her golden gems opened wide as her feet stumbled backwards.

"Nigredo, come here," a dark looming voice said.

Turning her head to the direction of the voice, she could see a tall man; his hair blonde and his face old. Something evil was plastered into his face, something alike Master whenever he would be swift and menacing. Looking to where the man's eyes were set, she saw her Gaignun. His back was pushed firmly against the door: his body trembling in such immense fear Faith's heart skipped a beat. Tears had begun to prick his eyes, and it would only be a matter of seconds until those tears of fear escaped his emerald, shaking gems. His twelve year old body was pushed so hard against the door; she could tell how much he wanted to escape.

Unlike the home, where the world seemed so fake, where every emotion she was being shown was obviously an illusion; this one felt so real. It felt so vivid, so alive that Faith found her heart beating faster then ever: she felt as if she was caught up in the middle of this. She wanted to reach out and save Gaignun.

"N-no!" he cried, his voice shaking.

The tone of his voice caused her legs to move. She ran to Gaignun, the younger version, and tried to grab for his hand. Her own hand slipped through his, showing how unreal he was. Staring in horror as her hand went straight through his, she shivered furiously. Her eyes shook as she watched Nigredo; the fear on his face was much stronger being so close to him. Her heart sunk as she tried again, trying to grab his hand. She wanted to tell him it would all be okay: she wanted to hold him close and promise she would be there to protect him, just like he had done. Staring at the younger version of the man she loved go through such horror was unbelievable for her eyes to watch.

"I'm abandoning my mission," he cried. "I won't follow your orders anymore!!"

The second half of his sentence was filled with so much anger, so much despise, Faith stumbled backwards. Just then, her eyes widened as he pulled something from his back pocket. The silver weapon shone in the light as he skilfully pointed it upwards, aiming perfectly for the man who he had been yelling at. His fingers were shaking as he held the weapon; the tips just hovering on the trigger gently.

"Gaignun!!" Faith yelled, feeling again drawn into the Encephalon: as if it was a real life situation.

She ran foreword, stepping in front of the weapon; her arms wide out, trying to stop him from pulling the trigger. But as the defining bang went through her ears; as the phantom bullet ran through her body, only to his the man behind her, her brain finally registered that she was merely in a memory that belonged to Gaignun. Her eyes looked to the young boy; staring into his frightened green ones. His hands lowered, dropping the weapon to the floor as his body went limp in horror. His back slipped down the door until his body was slumped onto the floor.

Nigredo's face had turned pale as he stared at the bleeding body behind Faith, which she refused to turn around to. Looking down at Nigredo, her eyes set with pity, she lowered her arms slowly. Her feet dragged forward, until she was looking down at him. The tears had finally begun to leave his eyes at such a fast pace it was almost like a water wall, yet this one was not beautiful: it was sorrowful. Faith slipped down onto her knees; her body just an inch in front of the phantom that couldn't see her.

"It's alright," she whispered soothingly. "It's okay, hush, its okay."

Her hand was perfectly placed above Nigredo's shoulder: as if it was touching him. Her eyes turned emotionless as she stared at him; his eyes looking from person to person in horror. Her ears blocked out the commotion of the room as she stared at Nigredo: wondering what had caused him to shoot the man like that. And then it dawned on her …

Gaignun was a _murderer._

No! That was an unfair assumption. She herself had seen the state Gaignun had been in whilst he was a child, whilst he was under the name Nigredo. He was terrified as he stared at the blonde headed man: something must have happened. Something dangerous, and horrifying. Beside's: it had been _Nigredo _that killed the man: not _Gaignun._

Whilst Faith had been deep in thought, the phantoms that were in the room had disappeared. Even the room had mixed in with itself, soon to have changed into an entirely different scene. Blinking a few times, Faith stared foreword: too stunned to even say, do or think anything. This place: it was defiantly not the place she had been a few moments ago. It was … completely, and utterly different.

"What … the hell …?" Faith whispered, her eyes darting left to right.

Unlike the room she had been sitting in, she found herself sitting on grass. She was back outside, where the sky was pitch black and the stars were dotted about in the cold sky. The moon was full, casting a large stream of light throughout the world: outlining things were silver rays so Faith was able to see everything crisp and clearly. There was another house ahead of her, this one similar to the first home she had been in, yet completely different. She was in a different place, and yet it seemed so familiar; almost … warming to Faith.

"Your daughter isn't right, Mr Clementine," a voice near to Faith's ear said.

Swiftly turning her head, Faith was about to see a pair of men, standing in the darkness of the lawn. Both were tall, with scruffy blonde hair, wearing suits. The tallest one was smoking quickly from his cigarette, his eyes set down on the ground as he shuffled from one foot to another. The other, much calmer man, who had spoken, was looking at him carefully: taking his time to chose his delicate words.

"There is nothing we can do for her," he said. "The pills do not work, confinement cannot result in anything other then self abuse or even a suicide attempt."

"You …" the man cleared his throat, breathing in the dirty smoke. "Expect me to let you destroy the life of my own child?"

"With her abilities …" he looked at the father, who glared furiously at him. "And her mental stability … we are unable to control her."

There was a loud bang as the fathers knuckles slammed into a near by tree; the brown bark breaking from the trunk, some of it tearing against his skin. His cigarette was being held tight between his fingers, and Faith could even see him shaking through the anger.

"Do you not think I know that?" he gritted his teeth. "With all she has done, do you not believe I know how uncontrollable she is?"

"I wasn't assuming anything, Sir," he whispered, gulping.

"She's just a child," the father said. "You cannot push her aside so easily."

There was a crunch beside Faith. The sudden sound pulled her attention. Stood near her was chaos: his pure white hair illuminated by the moonlight. He was looking at the men, though she knew his eyes had been set on her a few seconds ago. Standing to her feet, she stood close to chaos, both drawn into silence as they curiously watched the scene in front of them: neither of them understanding entirely who they were, or what was going on.

"May I speak to Miss Ackermann?" the man asked gently, looking at the father with soft eyes. "I will not harm the little girl, I can promise you that."

"She'll put up a fight if she speaks to you," the father warned.

"I do not care," the man smiled. "I wish to see her again, so that I may try and think of another way. Miss Ackermann shouldn't mind."

Faith turned to chaos as the phantom's slowly disappeared into the night air. His eyes were still watching as their faint outlines disappeared: the father had stayed in his place, whilst the other man had headed towards the house. Breathing out deeply, Faith raised a brow.

"Where are we?" she asked; her eyes glancing around. "Where is everyone else?"

"I came here," chaos answered. "I followed you and got here. Do you not remember?"

"Remember what?" Faith asked.

"The Encephalon dive projects the memories of those close to the subject," chaos said. "You share a bond with Momo, even if it is hatred."

"Are you saying …?" she gasped, her eyes widening. Quickly, she shook her head. "These cannot be my memories, chaos! I don't remember any of this!"

"Calm down," chaos whispered soothingly, putting his warm, gloved hand on her shoulder. "We'll figure this out, okay?"

**Omg uber crummy chapter. Whoop I updated tho! XD Hope you enjoy =)**


	13. Unlucky Black Cat

**|| Chapter [Thirteen] ||**

**Unlucky Black Cat**

The scent of blood lingered fresh in their noses as they entered the house. Chaos was the first to push open the wooden door, sticking his head into the family home. He had choked from the strong stench, tilting his head to the side, hoping to get more air from the outdoors then on the inside of the walls. Faith's brows raised as she watched chaos choke for a few short moments; his nose taking its time to get used to the strong smell that came inside of him. Obviously, chaos was unfamiliar with such a metallic, strong scent, unlike Faith. His gloved hand was pulled up to his mouth, covering his nose as well as his pink lips. He breathed into the thick material, smelling something much sweeter then the bloodied smell. His eyes glanced back at Faith, holding back the sense of shock that as she entered she was unaffected by the complete, almost drowning, smell of blood. Shutting the door soft behind her, Faith sniggered as she looked at chaos: finding it amusing how he was so affected by the simple smell. "It's just blood, chaos," she said, her voice sadistic. "It's what us humans all smell like, all on the inside. Each and every _one."_

His body shivered from her tone: his eyes transfixed on her for those long moments. Faith knew why his eyes wouldn't connect with hers: though he was curious, he didn't want to open the window into her mind and find out what was lurking about in there. His blood ran cold as he stared the girl up and down, unsure of how to react or how to socialize with such a person. One moment she would be the sweetest girl, who wouldn't even hurt a fly, and then the next moment she would be sadistic and crazy. It wasn't a fierce crazy: it was subtle with the way she chose her words and with the way she spoke in her tone. Faith was obviously hiding something deep within her veins, and though chaos knew it were to be frightening, to be almost evil, he couldn't help but be curious. Though, as he stared, he knew his curiosity would go unfulfilled if he were unable to communicate with her "madder" side better. Faith seemed to pick up on this, and she laughed; this one sad.

"If you are curious …" she slowly whispered her words crisp. "Then you will find out soon, will you not? Seeing as though my memories are being projected, we shall both see what _monster_ I may be."

"You …" chaos cleared his throat, moving his hand just enough for his voice to be heard clearly. "Are not a monster. Whatever makes you believe such a thing?"

"They were speaking about me," she answered. "I'm _sure_ of it. Miss Ackermann … is that … my name …?"

Chaos looked to the wooden floor, and then his eyes looked around the room they were stood in. As the silence ticked on, his eyes gathered the room. They were stood in a large family room; a large window opposite the wall they were stood by was curtained with dark red, silk drapes; by the window as a large television with three red sofas, and one black chair surrounding it. On the other side of the room, near the staircase, was a black bookshelf. Papers were sticking out on from all sorts of nooks crannies; keys placed on whatever spaces were available and the rest of the room was taken up by hundreds of different books, all dark and thick. The room they were in was dark, with a light orange light: creating a dark allusion, that was obviously trying to make the room look more warm and cosy, yet with the added stench of blood, it made it seem like a horrible horror movie. Pictures were on the walls: one of a small family: a beautiful, slim, redheaded mother; her husband with sandy blonde hair (the man they had seen outside smoking), a son who was quite tall with messy hair and facial features like his father and then a small, teenage girl. The girl was fifteen years old; her eyes a bright shade of ice blue that were gleaming with joy at the camera as her brother's arms were wrapped around her. She had long, beautiful bright blonde hair flowing neatly down her arms, being cut just above her elbows.

As chaos stared closer at the photo, he couldn't help but think of Faith. Her lips were curled up into such a warm, rosy smile it was just like hers (whenever she would be happy enough to smile). Her facial features were similar, but it was hard to tell. Was this younger girl in the photo the same girl he was stood in front of? If so, whatever had happened? Her eyes had been bright blue, and she had most defiantly been a human. Shaking his head, chaos refused to think of it anymore – this girl was not Faith: she couldn't have been.

"Well …?" Faith's impatient voice called him from his thoughts. He looked at her as she raised a brow, looking at him expectantly. After a few moments she couldn't help but smirk. "Chaos, were you even listening to me?"

"No, I um …" he searched his mind, trying to find out what she had said to him. Immediately, he felt rude for missing out something she had said. But, with the smile she shot at him, he knew not to feel anything bad at all.

"Don't worry about it," she smirked. "I asked if we should go upstairs. Should we?"

Nodding slightly, chaos turned around, heading for the stairs. With his spare arm he reached back, feeling around for Faith's hand. Her hand clamped against his gloved one; the silk glove felt so between her fingers, she felt warmth. Pulling her foreword, he brought her body protectively close to his. Faith held onto his hand nervously as they stepped up the stairs. Her legs were slow, as if her body knew what was about to meet with them as they travelled through the blood smelling home. For every three steps, chaos would quickly turn his head to Faith; to make sure she was okay. Each time she returned his gazes with a warm, yet almost weak, smile. Up on the second floor, the lighting was the same as the bottom one. Like the rest of the house, it was trying to create a warm look, which, again, would have worked well without the horrible smell.

Chaos had headed to the right, whilst Faith quickly turned to the left on an impulsive choice. She couldn't understand why; it was one of those moves that your body makes without your mind agreeing, or giving the command. Chaos quickly followed at her heel, his hands still busy. With a small frown, Faith stared at the wooden door in front of her. She had stopped walking and was fighting a battle with herself. Whilst her mind wanted to push open the door and find out what was on the other side, her hand wasn't letting her. For a few seconds she just stood there: her mind deep in thought as she tried to make a decision.

And then her mind won. As the door was pushed open, her eyes widened in shock: her throat letting out a small squeal from the sight her eyes had beheld. Looking over her shoulder, chaos had made exactly the same reaction; she could hear him chocking from the grotesque sight.

Sitting on the bed was the fifteen year old girl from the picture. Her blonde hair was running straight, the locks covering the sides of her face, casting a dark shadow against her features. Her gems were glowing furiously in a menacing way, just like Masters did; they stared at her bloody hands that rested gently in her lap. She was wearing a simple pair of blue jeans, and a long sleeved, white blouse. Both were stained deep in red liquid. It was sprayed across her chest in a swift fashion; there were all sorts of blobs, splatters and other marks. One on her shoulder resembled one of a hand print: someone had clung to her as she stood near their bleeding body, most likely staring at them with amused eyes as their life blood poured from their body. A line of blood on her cheek had run down her skin, only to drip off her chin. It was as if the blood was saddened; making a small, tear like movement. The bed was also caked in the blood, but as Faith looked left to right, searching for a corpse in the large, once perfect bedroom she found nothing. All that there was, was the fresh patches of blood from the person that once was living and breathing. No wonder the house stunk of the horrible smell.

But this scene, this sight was so familiar to Faith. Realizing something, she walked into the room and dragged chaos out of the door way, into the room with her. "Get in here otherwise you'll be in the way."

Raising a brow, chaos looked her up and down; this time his eye's meeting with hers. He moved out of the way, just like she had said: the both of them moving to the end of the bed, near a bloody desk. Chaos' feet soon became sticky with blood he stepped in, making his footsteps squeaky; his feet sticking to the floor. Groaning, he sighed deeply, unable to do anything about it for the moment. His eyes looked at the door Faith was intently watching, wondering who would be walking through.

"Oh Christ!" a male, gasping voice cried from outside the room. The girl on the bed lifted her head to the voice, her eyes immediately turned innocent.

"Daddy," she gasped. Her voice was young and innocent, yet had a strange drop of sadistic venom to it.

"What … have you done …?" he breathed. Her father soon became visible as he stood in the doorway, his eyes shaking with fear as he stared down at her blood covered daughter. Faith could see the urge in his eyes to take the girl, wash her down from the blood and hold her close to him. She could see how desperately her father wished for her not to be in this situation, with the grotesque blood dripping from her skin, her cloths; the wall. "What …?"

"Daddy, don't be mad," she almost pleaded. She stood to her feet, her body trembling as if it were a great task. Her father held back a flinch as she stood up, noticing a bloodied knife sitting on the bed. It had been right by her leg: he hadn't had noticed it. "Daddy."

"Sit down," he said, putting his arms foreword. He tried to look stern, but both Faith and chaos could see the fear in the young mans eyes: he was frightened of his daughter. "Sit down and rest."

The girl blinked a few times but was obedient. She slumped down onto the soft bed, sitting on the edge of it as she watched her father. Her hands moved down to the knife beside her, holding it gently. Her fingers ran across the smooth blade as if it were something innocent like a toy or doll. Her father bit his lip as he stared at her. As she stared back, her eyes slowly began to change: a large, cold, smirk appeared on her face. "How long does it take for someone to die, Daddy?"

Completely stunned by the question, he just stuttered a few words, gasping for breath. "W-why …" he cleared his throat: he couldn't show any weakness to her. He wasn't allowed to. "I wouldn't know. May you h-have an … idea…?"

"Well …" she seemed to play with the idea for a few moments before answering. "There can be many answers. It could take twenty years; say if they were that age. Or it could take from the moment I hurt them, to the moment I stop and they die. Or … it could take forever."

The father suddenly pulled something from his pocket. The girl sitting on the bed stared at her father, her eyes immediately filling with pure fear. When the silver gun had been pulled from the blazer pocket of the Father, Faith's eyes widened too; her lungs drew in an unwanted breathe as she stared foreword: her heart pounding like hell. It was as if she was experiencing it all: everything was real. The blonde headed girl on the bed stared at her father, tears stinging her eyes as the silence drew on. His finger had moved onto the trigger as he stared at her, refusing to look into her eyes.

"_Daddy_,"

Chaos looked away, his eyes glazed in pity as he focused on something else other then the memory he had unwontedly been drawn into. Faith felt a tear roll down her face as she stared at the poor girl in pity and shock. The teenaged girl could only breathe deeply as she stared at the gun, unsure of when her father would pull the trigger. How long did she have left to live? Two seconds? A minute? Five?

But then all those little, insignificant thoughts flew away as she suddenly felt disappointment to her father. The tears ran down her face as she bit her lip. "You're going to kill me for all the others I killed? I didn't mean to daddy, you know I didn't!" she pleaded. "You said you _loved_ me. I'm your daughter. Daddy, you made me! This is not entirely my fault, daddy. You created me."

"I …" he bit his lip. "Cannot have you living such a terrible life. I cannot have you feeling sadness all the time."

The girls ice blue gems widened. "Sadness? Daddy do you even know me?" she almost glared as she stared at her father, anger swelling through her veins. For a few moments she watched her father, her eyes investigating him: absorbing every feeling within his mind. Then, she sniggered; the tears had stopped as she laughed, her eyes amused in a crazy way. "Daddy, you're scared! You want me dead so that you cannot get into trouble – so that you cannot live in fear nor have a daughter like me."

His hands began to shake around the trigger. He was obviously contemplating to shoot his daughter very carefully. After a few long minutes, the girl grew impatient. A devious smile came across her face, warning something to her father. But before he even had the chance to react, a flash had come from her eyes. In a split second an incision had been made in her father's throat: as if someone had sliced him with the knife that sat by her. Amused, the girl watched as the blood poured from her fathers neck. He stumbled across the room, the warm red liquid spraying across the walls. His fingers grew limp, dropping the gun to the ground. The girl watched grinning as his body fell to the ground slowly: his organs finally giving up as all the life liquid was poured out of him from the one simple cut.

Faith, on the other hand, had been watching: her eyes widened in shock and in fear. A few tears began to roll down her face as she watched the man die. Her fists scrunched into fists as she stared at the girl who watched with amusement. "You fucking bitch!!" Faith screamed at the top of her lungs. "You could've done something else!! Why did you kill him??!!"

There was something about that man, something so special. Faith was connected to him; she knew it. She knew the way he spoke, she knew his patterns and she knew his name was Robert Clementine. There was much she knew about this man, even if it was all unclear. She was related to him. He had taken good care of her, protecting her with his life. And that blonde headed bitch … she had _killed_ him with some weird powers! In a flash his throat had been slit; his body emptied the blood from his flesh and he died. She felt the hands of chaos soothing her shoulders as she tensed up in anger. She wanted to let it all go, yet she knew it would be pointless: this was a mere memory. Something created by the Encephalon dive. For once Faith was thinking rationally: thinking that there would be no point to her hot anger.

There was a set of footsteps, and before Faith even lifted her head she heard someone cry out. "Faith Ackermann!! What the hell have you done?!!"

_She _had killed him?


	14. What I Need

**Comments –**

I can't freaking remember if Gaignun was elsewhere during the dive! Oh my, who cares? I've fiddled with the storyline enough throughout the last few chapters (last time I remembered, Gaignun wasn't in love with a Realian that was … o … *thinks* … about eight years younger then him). Ahem, yeah anyhow. This chapter really is going to suck guys, I rush through chapters 13 and 14, only because of my hatred for those numbers (yeah, the author of this story is a complete freak). Anyhoo, thank you guys so much for the reviews! It means so much to me that you're enjoying this story so much. I'll try to keep the standards as high as I can per chapter. I'd also like to apologize for the fact my chapters are slowly getting shorter, and shorter as they go on. I'm trying to add as much detail into chapters as I can, thus lowering the length. If anyone minds just say and I'll try to make them longer (I prefer shorter chapters to be honest, but I'm not the reader of this story XD). Thanks for taking time to read it, and a bigger thanks if you review =) And don't worry – Albedoness is coming up in chapter 15 (WHOOP). The fun part... XD I hate all this lovey dovey stuff. It's quite boring and frankly, I can't write it. Chapter Fifteen will definatly be better, where I can write what I'm comfortable with so just hang in there guys XD

Xxx Sweet Sedaytion xxX

**| Chapter [Fourteen] |**

**What I Need**

Chaos' hands were quickly moved onto her shoulders, hoping this soft touch would someone calm her down, or maybe tear her from whatever thoughts she would be having. Depise, hatred or regret could be lingering around in her mind: or perhaps all three, mixed in with some other emotions. Whatever would be inside her mind, he couldn't even begin to contemplate how … confusing it must have been for the girl. One day she had thought herself as a Realian, with nothing in her life to look foreword, with nothing to look back at. Once it had all been simple for the young woman: as simple as A B C, but now. Now everything was muddled up, all she had known what not really her reality. And worst of all she had killed her own father for no real means as far as they knew. Though he had held a gun to her, threatening to kill her, there was something in his eyes both chaos and Faith had picked up on: he was not going to pull the trigger. But the younger Faith, blind to the emotion, reacted too quickly: too impulsively to maintain a good level headedness, resulting in his murder. And now there was someone else being pulled into the catastrophe, and God knew who this person would be. Chaos hesitated to watch, wondering whether the next person entering the room would fall victim to Faith's temper, to be murdered by her o-so strange powers he had just seen.

Faiths skin shivered under his touch, the warmth of his gloved hands could be felt underneath her thin gloves. This time she didn't try to pull away from the touch, though she wished someone kind hearted like chaos wasn't touching her. A murderer: she was a murderer. But it didn't make sense. Though she saw it, she saw herself kill someone, she couldn't remember it. Perhaps the girl sitting on the bed wasn't really her. That little bit of hope was clung tightly onto by Faith: her eyes glistened with it, praying and praying the blond headed, blood drenched girl on the bed wasn't her. Though she knew she had those darkened thoughts, about wanting to _emotionally_ harm Gaignun, never had she thought about _murder_. Never had she thought about rudely taking away someone's life. And as she thought harder about it, she began to feel disgusted by herself. What right _did_ she have for _taking_ the life of someone else?! She wasn't The Grim Reaper, she didn't have the damn right! Ugh, just thinking about it made her stomach knot up, the anger pumping through her veins as she wanted to lash out at the blond headed bitch that sat contently on the bed, happy to be drenched in blood.

"It's a good sight," Faith couldn't help but muster under her breath. She gritted her teeth. "But one should not kill. She …" her chest clenched as she paused, her hands turning into such tight fists her knuckles turned white. "I shouldn't have killed. It's wrong, it's sick!" her voice began to get louder, grabbing the slightly shocked attention of chaos, who watched her with wide eyes. "It's Goddamn fucking _sick_!!"

Faith raised her left arm then swung in down fiercely in pure rage. "_Faith!_"

Her body froze, trembling as she heard his voice. No, she couldn't bear it – Gaignun had watched through the screen in the real world. He had witnessed the murder she had committed years and years ago, whilst being a beautiful blonde headed human. Faith couldn't entirely understand the circumstances, not knowing why the young version of herself had killed, why she had those strange powers or even why her hair was blond, though Faith knew all too well her natural shade was the unusual pink with beautiful ruby red highlights running through. Being defensive, and not thinking properly Faith hissed cruel words to him, not knowing what she was saying until she had said it. "You killed a man too. You were just as cruel as me, so don't even begin to feel pity or think that you are better."

"_Faith … I …_" Gaignun's voice was quiet, unable to create words. She could hear the hurt in his tone, and she immediately felt a tang of guilt. Her head hung as she looked down to the floor. His terrified face came back into her head: Gaignun was much better a person then Faith was. Faith had just killed her Father on impulse; Gaignun had reasons: she could see it in his eyes. She had no idea what these reasons were, but they were good.

"I'm so sorry …" she whispered, hating herself. "I was … rude. More then rude. I should never have said that about you, Gaignun. You … the old you had _reasons._ Oh God … I'm such a terrible person. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry … sorry, sorry, sorry …"

Chaos looked at her, his expression soft. The scene in the background seemed to have stopped playing, the younger Faith that had been sat on the bed had disappeared; the memory ending. Knowing Gaignun would've wished to do it, and because of chaos' kind nature, he took a step towards Faith, whose head was still hung. He wrapped his arms gently around his slim, fragile body, pulling her close to him. Faith stood still, unsure of what chaos was doing. Her stiff body was pushed against his warm one soothingly, trying to calm her down. Awkwardly, she began to wrap her arms around chaos, hugging him less tightly then he was hugging her. She rested her head on his shoulder, being just a mere inch shorter then him. As she breathed deeply, she realized chaos was the only person apart from Gaignun to hug her closely, and she couldn't understand why he was doing it.

"_There's no need to apologize, Faith …_" Gaignun softly said. "_Please do not worry. I understand … your upset… I want to be there for you … I want to hold you close, tell you it'll be okay."_

Faith sighed deeply. They were almost working together: chaos trying his best to do what Gaignun wanted, to sooth her. Though it was working ever so slightly, it wasn't what she wanted. She wanted Gaignun to hold her, to tell her it would all be okay. "Then do it … I need you."

* * *

That was it – that was the thing that would push Gaignun to her. Standing to his feet, he ripped the headset off his head, messing up his jet black locks ever so slightly. He threw the headset onto the desk, tucking the chair underneath the desk. Eyes were set on him as he searched the draws of the desk, looking for a pair of red glasses, so that he too could get into the Encephalon. It would make more sense that way. Pulling her back would most defiantly piss her off. Either that or she would feel useless. Just pulling her back into the real world would've made her think Gaignun thought of her to be weak. Even admitting she needed him would've been classed as weak in her book – at least that was what Gaignun believed. Even though he knew it would be better to bring her back into the real world, where no more of those horrible memories could chase after her, he didn't want to be the reason she felt weak. He wanted to be the reason she could pull through it all, even if he had to hold her hand ever step of the way (which he would be happy about – helping her was what he wished to do).

He groaned deeply as he slammed shut the last draw. "Where the hell are they?"

"There's a spare set here, Master Gaignun," Mary's soft voice said. Turning his head to her, he saw the pair of red glasses in her hand. She was smiling sheepishly as he walked over to her, taking the glasses.

"Thank you," he nodded, walking out of the room.

"Ah, Master Gaignun!" Mary called, just as he was about to walk through the door. Gaignun turned around to her, raising a brow. "Are ya' sure you'll be alright down there? Don't ya' wanna' just stay here and leave chaos to take care of her?"

"He can't take care of her as well as I can," he said, slipping through the door.

Quickly, Gaignun made his way to the dive room, standing between chaos' and Faith's bodies. He pulled off the black blazer he wore, taking his tie off as he did so – for once looking extremely casual. He undid the top button of his shirt, which he had untucked, and then slid the glasses onto his handsome face. With a nod from Allen, he soon felt the dizzy spell anyone gained from entering the Encephalon.

* * *

Now she hated herself for saying that. Her body had pulled away from chaoses as she stood by the window, staring out to the dark garden below. She could see two figures, one of them was her mother, with her beautiful hair and face, the other was her brother. Both were looking quite distraught as they paced the garden, their legs moving quickly. In the hand of her mother was a cigarette, yet she was rarely taking anything of it, instead she held it close to her head, letting the substance burn itself away. She could see her eyes red with tears, her mouth opening to speak, yet shutting just as quickly. Her eyes were glazed to the floor as she paced, whilst her brother was looking at their mother with concern. Faith just hated how she had to say it. How she had to say _I need you._

It was what the weak would say. She couldn't understand it – why was it now that she needed someone? She had survived years of torture from Albedo, emotional and psychical. She had come close to death many a times, cried herself to sleep and drunk herself until she was fully out of it on several occasions, just so that only bit of pain she'd have to think about in the morning was the dreaded headache signalling a hangover. But when she was finding out about her own life, a terrible murderous life in which she had brought upon herself, she was suddenly weak. There were still many unanswered questions, like how many other people had she killed? What were those strange powers and did she still have them? And ultimately … why had she been turned into a Realian? Was it her mother and brother who had made the decision? It would make sense if they didn't want their family member being put down for murder. And erasing the memories was a lovely idea – Faith didn't want anymore dark memories clouding around in her head, though she knew she deserved it.

There was a little bit of movement behind her, yet she just ignored it, not wanting to turn her head around just in case. Biting her lip, she could hear a set of footsteps drawing close to her. Before she knew it, a set of strong hands were on her arms, soothing over her skin. The touch was Gaignun's, she figured that out straight away, but it was the fact he was touching her that caused her to swiftly turn her head. The pure shock of her beloved being there was something she didn't expect. Her eyes stared up into his beautiful emerald ones that showed nothing but pure love for her. Her heart melted as she slammed her body into his, wrapping her arms around him.

He hushed her gently, though no words were leaving her lips. His fingers ran through her hair deeply, his head nuzzling deep into her locks. Possessively, he held her close to him, never wanting to let go. He felt a strange sense of relief as he held her, happy to be protecting her – to be there for her. They had only spent a few minutes, probably half an hour, separated yet he hated it. He hated watching her through the screen as she got angry at herself, as her emotions became muddled and confused. There was an urge to pull her out of the dive, yet somehow he had managed to hold it back. "It's okay …" he gently said, feeling her skin trembling. "It happened long ago, Faith. You're not that girl anymore, okay? Your sweet," he moved her head gently to kiss her forehead. "Your kind, your loving," again, another peck on her forehead that caused her cheeks to burn red. Gaignun smirked. "And you're cute."

"What the hell happened to you, Gaignun?" she laughed, trying to lighten the mood. He looked down at her, a frown on his face. She smiled playfully, moving her hands down his white shirt. "You're not as smart as you usually are. Aren't you worried about the impression you'll make?"

"In an Encephalon dive?" he smirked. "Now who would I want to impress here?" he laughed, tucking some of her hair behind her ear.

"Well, me of course," she smirked, her eyes more playful.

"I don't need to," he said. "You're already mine, are you not?"

That sentence made her hear flutter. She was _his_. Her cheeks turned to a bright shade of red as she looked down at the floor, her heart pounding quickly. Then, as she stood there, the area seemed to change in a flash. From being in the bedroom, the three of them were stood in a garden, unlike the one at the first house or Faith's old house. It was much more … posh compared to them, and there was a large, extremely large building that it belonged to. It was just like any other smart building on Miltia, the walls silver and the windows oblong shaped and clear as crystal. Faith had pulled away from Gaignun as her curious eyes glanced around the new place. There were Doctors and other sorts of clever people walking about, glancing around carefully. And then there were children. A few had blonde hair, all of them boys and all wearing the same uniform: grey and blue. As Faiths' eyes searched more and more, she noticed more of the boys; all of then identical in looks. Their eyes were a dull, almost dead, shade of blue with their hair a standard shade of common blond. Even their _skin_ colour was exactly the same. Then it dawned on her. U.R.T.V's. She had gained a vast knowledge about them from Master … Albedo … when they had her in his possession. During his rants he would speak about them, speak about his disgust towards them and how he was grateful neither him, Rubedo or Nigredo were like them.

Curious about what expression may be on Gaignun's face, Faith turned around, only to be disappointed. He remained his usual, unclouded self: not allowing Faith or even chaos to see within his emotions and understand what was going through his mind. Though Faith knew better – he was thinking about it all. She could sense that _and_ she could see his eyes busy in thought. His eyebrows were slightly furrowed as well, which could show a sign of distaste towards the entire situation. From what Master had told Faith, the younger years of their childhood were not good ones. And from what Faith had earlier seen with Gaignun killing the blond headed man (who as she thought about it looked quite like the U.R.T.V's), it would defiantly be an almost disturbing time for him. Faith edged close to him, and wrung her fingers around his assuredly.

"You can go back if you wish," she said to him, once she had gained his attention. "You do know I have to stay here though, don't you?"

"I understand," he nodded. "But I am not leaving you. I was stupid, foolish enough to do that earlier. God knows what else you may see from your past."

"_My_ past, Gaignun," she outlined, locking her eyes with him as she spoke seriously. "My past that I have had brought upon myself. I killed Father; I killed others I do believe as well. I don't know what state I had been under, but I did it. _Me_ and only _me_," she sighed deeply as she continued. She suddenly hoped all this murderous speak wouldn't make Gaignun hate her. "Facing my past is something I have to deal with. Otherwise what will I be? It's what I deserve."

"Not true," Gaignun said. "You said you don't know what state you had been in. This Faith, this new Faith, doesn't deserve pain."

He kissed her head gently, and then sighed. "We had better go find Jr, don't you think?"

"That would be a wise decision," chaos nodded. "I'm afraid me and Faith got separated from them whilst going through a teleported whilst in Sakura's home."

"It's understandable," Gaignun nodded.

About to pull Faith away, he froze, noticing her own stiff posture. Her eyes were wide in fear as she stared foreword, her skin trembling as she stared at the white headed, young Albedo.


	15. Not Bulletproof

**Comments –**

Nineteen reviews? Oh my God, thanks guys so much!~ It means _so_ much you read a 14-year-olds little rambling that can just about be counted as a story. Thanks again! :3 (I can't actually express how much it means to me XD as silly as that sounds – I never expected to get more then two reviews or something). Kk, sorry about this chapter – I really, really have been distracted lately, but I hate the number 14 so I needed to put _something_ up. Please don't be harsh kthnx :3 I'm going through the story too, later in the week, so that I can make it more detailed in places so it should hopefully look much better! :3

**|| Chapter [Fifteen] ||**

**Not Bulletproof**

Those purple gems were much more different then the set she had seen before. The craziness that she could once remember had disappeared, leaving only … innocence (if that were to be the word) left. They were bright, happy yet with a mischievous side to them – an almost playful side. But as they suddenly darted left to right, as if the young Albedo were lost, they gained a surprisingly big amount of panic. They were shaking, looking lonely as he tried to find something or someone. He couldn't have been lost, surely not. The Institute Master had told her about was where he had lived throughout all his childhood years: by the age he was then, surely he knew his way around. He had to have been about twelve, give or take a year. How strange … within fourteen years the boy had grown into a man, thus changing him dramatically. From the little skittish boy she could see looking around in a panic, to the cruellest, most bitter man in the entire universe: it was an incredible change. Faith couldn't believe it; she couldn't believe she was staring at her Master. She was stunned: completely and utterly stunned by the sight.

She could feel Gaignun's tugging arm around hers, yet she refused to move. Her eyes were still set on Albedo whilst she opened her mouth to speak. "I want to watch," she simply said, her voice monotone and almost emotionless.

Gaignun looked down to her, a brow raised. She was always so confusing, so strange with her actions. A normal person would've walked away, refusing to endure watching someone who could cause them such fear. People would turn their backs to someone who had caused them pain; pain like Albedo had caused Faith. But she … wanted to watch? Either she was absolutely crazy, or she was strong. Yes, it was strong – Faith was strong. She'd go through anything, but he still couldn't understand why she wanted to watch his past. Was she going to give him a second chance? Gaignun knew the younger Albedo was a polar opposite to the older version. Would watching him cause her confusion? He couldn't help but feel concern for Faith as her eyes were set on the white headed boy. His hands moved up her arm, feeling her skin shaking a little from his touch. Sliding his hand across her back, he rested his palm on her shoulder, pulling her close to him lovingly.

She fidgeted a little, still not used to the touch. Her heart was pounding, collecting all the thoughts and feelings. Fear, curiosity and love were all pumping through her veins from the things going on around her, and she was struggling to figure out how she really felt. She didn't know whether her heart was pounding against her ribcage so hard because of fear for standing close to Albedo or because Gaignun was touching her again.

"Can I …?" she whispered, taking a step foreword. Gaignun's arm nearly fell off her from her sudden step, but he managed to keep it there.

"Do you want me to come?" he asked her soothingly, seeing Albedo moving down the path.

Faith bit her lip, contemplating something for a moment. She shook her head after the minute, feeling a bit of courage. She turned her head to Gaignun, smiling. "Just a simulator, right? Nothing will happen to me?"

"I promise," he nodded. "But … can you handle it on your own?"

"I'm not a child, Gaignun," she smirked, leaning foreword. She kissed him gently on the lips. Pulling away, she kept her face close to his. "I'll meet up with you in a minute. Okay?"

He nodded, a little stunned by the sudden kiss, but happy none the less. Faith couldn't help but smirk at the effect she had on Gaignun, swiftly turning around. She felt him flick her hair when she turned, causing her to laugh slightly. Before taking a step foreword, he ruffled it, causing her to turn around again. Playfully, she glared at him, holding back the smirk as best as she could.

"Your evil," she said, brushing her hair back down as she turned around. She took a step foreword, and heard him speaking.

"Yeah, but you love it,"

Faith smirked, continuing to walk ahead without a word. If she turned around it would turn into a full scale argument (even if it were just playful). He was challenging her, and she had to stop from biting. Though she knew she would most likely win the argument (years spent with Albedo had turned her tongue into quite a silver, sharp one) she didn't have the time. She wanted to face those demons inside of her and see what Albedo was like in his childish years. Perhaps that could erase some of the fear, if she were able to look into his past, perhaps that could shed some light on the situation. Plus, she couldn't deny it, she was curious about what her Master's past was like.

Turning the corner, she was out of Gaignun's eyes. She shivered furiously for some strange, bizarre reason. There was something creepy about the Encephalon: something in her gut was telling her to run back, run back to Gaignun without a second thought. But before she even had the chance to figure out the reason why, or what is was, she felt a white hot pain run through her arm, to her shoulder and finishing at her neck.

She cried out, whimpering, as someone grabbed her, and pulled her back. Her sight went blurry as she was pulled through a gap between the brick walls, into a dark, shaded part of the park that was under the cover of the many trees. The person that had hold of her wrist suddenly pushed her down to the ground. She felt her back hit a root of a tree, causing her to cry out again in pain. God, it felt worse then it normally did. The days she had spent without pain had caused her to become 'weak' again. She wasn't used to the hot, aching pain and the clicking of her bones as someone hurt her.

"_Checkmate __ma poupee."_

No, no, no! Oh God no! The tears ran down her face suddenly, as if someone had turned on the tap. Not now, not ever: she couldn't handle it. Her eyes slowly opened, peeking out: hoping that they wouldn't meet with him. Perhaps it was someone else, playing a cruel, damned trick on her. Or maybe it was all her imagination. Yes, that couldn't be it. Her heart was pounding with a thin bit of hope, which was pointless to think of. It was stupid – pathetic. She couldn't cloud herself with hopes as much as she wanted to – it was almost cruel to her to think that she wouldn't see Master.

"No …" she whispered, her eyes fully open.

He stood above her, his glowing eyes menacingly staring at her. He was smirking, trying not to laugh as he watched her lying on the floor, with no power. All his again: she was his. Again she would call him Master, again she would be there for him if he needed to take his anger out on something or if he was just plain bored. But why was it always her? She sobbed loudly, wiping her wet eyes with the back of her hand.

"Why me?" she asked, her tone quiet and weak. "Why? Why?"

He laughed a little, the laugh so crazy, so menacing it sent shivers down her spine. "Because your just o-so fun to play with. My chessboard was boring without you, you know? I wanted you back at my side, ma poupee."

"Back … at your side?" she whispered, moving back a little. She set her head on the truck of a tree, using it as support to sit up properly. She breathed deeply, glaring a little at Master. "Never have I been at your side. Never have you treated me as your equal."

"That is not true," he said, looking at her. His eyes tried to show hurt, though she could easily look through his allusion. "I never killed you, like I killed the others."

"You came close to it though," she glared furiously now. She wouldn't be swayed by him, she couldn't show her weakness. He enjoyed that: he fed off the fear that she had provided him with over the long years of being in his possession. But no, that wasn't going to work anymore. She was strong. Hell, she had freaking killed someone, so that meant she had some sort of power, right? "You believe hurting someone to the point they are close to death is counting them as your equal?"

He was silent, knowing there would be more for her to say. He watched her curiously, intrigued by her strength that he hadn't seen before.

"If so, I believe you too should go through Goddamn pain!" she yelled, standing to her feet. Her hands were trembling, her legs felt like jelly. She was standing up to her Master and it terrified the hell out of her. She couldn't help but feel a little hatred towards herself for saying such things. Those feelings of needing to please Master were still in her veins, and though they weren't as strong, she still felt them. She struggled to over power them, to make herself be strong. She had to be – she wanted a life with Gaignun, rather then a life filled with death and pain with Master.

He laughed, again long and menacing. His eyes flashed with that evil spark Faith knew so well, causing her to take a step back. "Haha, o Faith you don't have the guts. Remember all those you killed? Come on, you have to remember," he put a slim, strong finger on her cheek.

"_Don't touch me!_" she fiercely yelled. She glared at his pale finger, and then her eyes flashed. He hissed in pain and suddenly there was a large slice across his index finger, quickly dripping with blood.

Faith's eyes widened as her heart began to pound furiously. A million and one feelings coursed through her panicking veins.

_No! What the hell did I do? _She grabbed her head with her fingers, scrunching her hair under the slim, pale fingers, close to pulling it out. She shook her head; the feelings were swiftly coming back to her heart, as if using that little power had unlocked the chest to everything. It had been the key, unlocking all her unwanted past, all her unwanted damned thoughts. Her breathing was quick, tears streaming down her face. Those images were in her head: bloody, torn up carcasses and ripped off limps. She had mutilated many people with just a look and a flash of her eyes. An inch long, an inch deep: whatever the size of the incision she wanted she could make it. Her eyes were like knives, slicing through people, killing them yet she didn't know why. She didn't know what this power was and she didn't know how she came to posses it.

All she knew was that it was a curse. Now that she had unlocked it again it would start to devour her from the inside.

Her legs trembled beneath her. Faith looked at Albedo, who was staring at her, amused by her. He was finding it more then amusing, entertaining to watch her go through such pain. Her eyes had gotten bloodshot already. Quickly, she darted for the exit of the small forest Albedo had dragged her into. Again, she cried out when he reached out, grabbing her hair. He yanked her back, pulling her and knocking her side into a tree. A small scream left her lips as she was pulled into the tree, another chorus of pain running through her fragile body. He had yanked so hard at her hair; he had torn some of her beautiful pink and red locks from her scalp.

His fingers retracted from her hair, and she almost dropped to the ground. Her hands grabbed the tree, her nails tearing into the bark as she used it to gain her balance again. She breathed deeply, trying to conduct herself. She hated the pain, she hated the fear. She just wanted Gaignun back.

There was a thought … why didn't anyone pick up on the _intruder_ in the Simulator?! Seriously, was Allen that much of a dumbass he couldn't pick up the new, unwanted human inside? Faith gritted her teeth – so her death, her suffering would've been because of that bastard Allen. How … idiotic. She stopped herself from thinking of Allen and whom to blame for the actions that were being carried out: she had to focus on surviving and getting away. She needed to be away, she couldn't handle being back in his grasp.

"You're a bastard …" she whispered.

"Yes, but you love it though," he smirked.

'_Your evil.' 'Yeah but you love it.'_

"I love _you_ …" she whispered, swallowing a lump in her throat as she thought about Gaignun. _'He'll hear you say that. He'll hear you, I promise …'_ a voice in her head said as she gained courage to turn around to face Master. She shivered a little as he stared at her. Those eyes were so dark, so menacing and crazy she still couldn't believe the younger version of him was really him. It was just so hard to get her head around it.

As if he could sense the thoughts in her head about Gaignun, though he hadn't heard her whisper, he spoke, almost smugly. "How are you and Nigredo? Getting a long quite well I assume … sleeping with him yet?"

Faith's cheeks flushed. "N-no! I don't need to sleep with him to prove I love him!"

Albedo smirked. "Of course. Because he doesn't want to sleep with a doll. Hah, he doesn't even love you. Why do you think he hasn't come here to save you?"

"He doesn't know," Faith said, feeling a bit of blood run down her lip. She wiped it with the back of her hand, realizing she had torn her rosy lips on the tree bark somehow. "And don't even begin to speak badly of him. He's a damn better person then you could ever be, _Albedo._"

Silently she congratulated herself for addressing Albedo without using formalities of 'Master' or 'Sir' she had grown used to know. There was an urge within her, to show him how strong she really was. She wanted to make Albedo suffer for all he had done to her, even though she knew an "eye for an eye" was never the best way for justice. Revenge was wrong, she knew that, but that urge was so strong. He had caused her to suffer so badly, and now with her newly founded courage, and the help of those strange powers she could put Albedo through whatever pain she wanted. He couldn't die after all, which always made it that much fun. A little smirk came upon her face: at least there would be no chance of her doing the wrong thing and going too far, resulting in his murder.

But … what if it all went horribly wrong? What if she couldn't over power him? There was a little flashback to the knife incident that happened earlier in the week. He had been so angry with her, she could still feel it. But that was with a knife … she wouldn't be so careless this time. She wouldn't let herself.

"Ah, so your using my name?" he smirked. "That Nigredo has you so tightly around his finger? Oh I'm disappointed … I'll have to teach you again, before you have a chance to turn back on me! " he sighed deeply, shaking his head as he looked at her with disappointment. "After all I did for you and you do this … my ma poupee … how inadequate of you. I thought you were better then that. Hah, I guess that's what I get for taking in a _murderer …_"

He had hissed the word so cruelly it kept repeating itself over and over in Faith's mind. Each time it stabbed her in the heart, yet fuelled her with anger. What right did he have for calling her that? All of the Kirschwasser's, she had once believed with all her heart to be her sisters, had been murdered by his hands. Many people had been murdered by his hand.

"You're a murderer too!" she screamed, swinging her arm down.

The beautiful gold eyes flashed again, changing from gold to ice blue in a split second: it was almost impossible to see, unless one had been staring at her eyes. There was a cry from Albedo as a large cut was made on his flesh, going across his chest. Soon his white jumpsuit was being covered in his warm, red, liquid. The incision went from an inch under his shoulder, sweeping across his chest in a diagonal way. It was, extremely deep and was causing some pain for Albedo.

"Ahh!" he groaned deeply, his hands moving to his chest as they pushed onto the wound, creating pressure to stop the stinging pain. It was hard for him to breathe; the cut had gotten deep enough to slice parts of his lungs in places. He coughed, choking up red blood. He fell to the floor, struggling to conduct himself to use his regenerating powers. It was a simple procedure, but he was always too stunned by an injury to use them within the first few seconds.

Faith stared at him, her eyes wide yet emotionless. Her cloths had gotten sprayed a little by his blood and all she could think about what slicing him again. How she wanted pain to come upon Albedo, how wonderful that would be! But she forced herself to get to the wall, away from him. Her hands clung to the corner of the cold wall, staring at Albedo. She was taking too long – she was pushing her luck. Soon he'd be using his powers, and then he'd be after her. She needed safety, she knew that.

"I won't tell them you're here," she said, her voice cold. "Just leave me the hell be. You can have that Y-Data from Momo. You can kill the girl if you wish. Just leave me."

"You know …" he groaned, beginning to use his powers. The pain was slowly going away and he could speak properly again. "I can't do that."

"You _will_," she growled, again her voice as cold as ice.

Quickly, she ran out of the forest area, her heart pounding quickly. The light felt good on her skin, to her eyes but she couldn't shake away the fear. Suddenly, she felt her body banging into someone elses. Before she had a chance to see who it was, their arms were wrapped tightly around her, holding her close. It was Gaignun: the way he hugged her, the way he smelled, it was all familiar. She wrapped her arms tightly around him, shutting her eyes. Her body was trembling so badly and she was struggling to breath over her sobbing.

"Faith, Faith," he gasped. "Are you okay? Shhh, stop crying, please stop crying. It's okay, I'm here." He buried his head into her hair, holding her close.

"Gaignun, I love you," she whispered, putting her head into his chest. _'He's going to kill me. Albedo's going to kill me. Oh my God … what the hell have I done??! What did I do that for? His eyes … oh dear God his eyes … his face.'_

She couldn't get that image out of her mind. That horrible, angry look he had given her when she ran away, leaving him to bleed, halfway regenerated. Oh and that look when she had hurt him! He was so disgusted, so annoyed it was forever burned into her mind. That little look caused the strong girl to tremble. All that courage she had gained disappeared when she realized what she could lose. Again, she was reduced back to her weak state, her eyes emptying with tears and her body shaking. She wasn't as bulletproof as she made herself out to be.

"Shh, I love you too," he whispered. "Faith, what happened? What's gotten into you?"

He pulled away from her a little, to look her up and down. He brushed down her hair, but when his emerald eyes came to set upon her cloths his eyes widened in horror. "Your covered in blood!"


	16. Damages

**|| Chapter [Sixteen] ||**

**Damages**

It was clinging to her cloths, the sticky red liquid. Fresh to the touch, his ivory coloured fingers reached down to wipe some of it away, whilst Faith tried to stop herself from viciously shaking. It was as if she had been out during the night, sitting in ice cold rain. Her skin had gotten paler then usual, a sickly look was plastered to her face as she stared foreword, her flesh cold to the touch. The artificial sunlight was bathed on it, though it wouldn't get warm. As she quickly turned her head behind her, her neck clicked gently, releasing some of the horrible tension. The perfectly stoned tiled pathway, leading down to the courtyard, and to some other places of the institute, was clear. The wall outlined it, and she could just about see the gap Albedo had pulled her into, where she had fought with him, screamed at him and ultimately damaged him like he had done to her many a time.

"_Murderer."_

"_She's a bloodthirsty murderer, you know that right?"_ a man from Faith's memory said. It was the same man who she and chaos saw speaking to her father, yet this time the question was directed to her mother, who was staring down to the floor; dismay plastered all on her face. Her mothers face in such a state caused Faith's heart to skip a beat as she refrained herself from shedding a tear. They were sitting in a kitchen, the world warm yet the atmosphere so thick and silent; a knife could slice its way through it. The younger, blond headed Faith was hiding in the doorway, her trembling fingers clinging tightly to the frame, as if it would protect her from everything. Her eyes were darting from adult to adult, trying to understand the words, trying to understand why they thought so badly of her.

"_She's my daughter,"_ her mother's frail voice squeaked. She was holding back the tears, trying not to let that lump through her throat. "_I don't want to harm her. I cannot let anything … happen … to my little girl …"_

She was not as innocent as her mother was making her out to be. Those loving parental feelings, Faith would've killed for them whilst she believed to be a Realian. Now she would've killed for them. She wanted the love of her father, her mother and her brother. That photo of all four of them came back into her mind; her brother's arms wrapped around her, having said nothing but just being there, with them was what made her happy enough. It wasn't the picture perfect family. Hell, it probably would be if it weren't for that little murderous horror, the last child, Faith Ackermann. If it weren't for her, it would be the perfect family, apart from those little arguments here and there, but none the less: they'd have been happier without her. Well, that's what she thought at least. But who wouldn't be happier? With the strain of a murderer, a girl that could kill her parent (and has proved to do so) in a blink of the eye, who could even be happy? Life must've been a horror for her parents, and during the time Faith couldn't see it. She could just see her innocence being shattered but she didn't understand why. She even found it _fun_ to murder, to torture and to send fear down her family's spines.

"_Oh Faith, I knew this would happen. You're just scared, aren't you? Where have you been all these years? Your darling Mother misses you much …" _That man had introduced himself as brother. Well, not introduced as such but he had called her sister. Obviously that meant they were related and in that house, and in her faint, distant memories that were slowly coming to her, she couldn't figure out anyone else who would be brother.

"_Your darling Mother misses you much …"_ a pang of hope ran through her veins. Her mother hadn't been killed by her hands, yes, that was good – more then good. That was great! She'd get her chance to apologize to the woman that had given birth to her and held her close to her heart for nine months. She would be able to tell that woman how sorry she was for killing the love of her life without reason, how terrible she felt for breaking up the family and how much she wanted to bring him back if she could, not for her own reasons but for her mother. How distraught she would've been for losing the man she loved, who had helped create her darling son and imperfect daughter. Faith couldn't help but believe her mother was blaming herself for all that happened: she knew she would've done. Faith could see why her mother would blame herself, as she helped create her, but surely, surely, it wasn't her fault.

"_This is not entirely my fault, daddy. You created me." _A parent does not decide how their children should be. A parent has no control over who they create, what eye colour they may have or what hair colour. At least not on a subconscious level. DNA is created from what a mother and what a father both hold, and even then it is chosen at random; blue eyes could be pulled from the father, or green from the mother. Like a box of chocolates. There are only certain things that can be had, and some have higher chances of being chosen then others, but ultimately is it just a win lose situation. Either you get what you want, or you don't. Whatever they could create, they couldn't create a murderous girl. No, Faith had given that to herself. At least she thought so.

However she got that bit of a maddening side of her, she wished not to know. It was getting too complicated as it was, and the entire girl simply wished to do was to tell them all how sorry she was. Because it hadn't happened forever ago: all the things had happened recently, and the brother was still alive, and from his words, so was their mother. And she _missed_ her.

But though his words were o-so kind, o-so sweet and wonderful there was that little cold drop to them, as if it weren't all what she believed it to be. Was he teasing her for all she had done? No, that couldn't be it. No one would be as pathetic as that, surely.

"Faith, how did you get so much blood on you?" Gaignun asked her, his voice crackling with concern, though when she looked into his emerald gems she saw nothing of the sort. She could see the seriousness in his eyes, the worry that she had murdered someone. She sensed Rubedo in Gaignun's thoughts: o how good she was at reading the mind and picking up on the thoughts of people! Yes, that was it, Gaignun was worried she had murdered Rubedo.

Enjoying that a little bit, she couldn't help but let the darker side of her heart drift through into her soul. She sniggered, bringing her torn up, bark and dirt covered hand to her face. She covered her trembling lips with her hand, still sniggering ever so slightly. Gaignun stared at her, his brows narrowed. Sensing the darkened thoughts were coming through, though he didn't know what they were about, he pulled himself together and began to gently rub her face with his thumb. A little bit of blood had mingled in with her tears, making the wet salty tears that stained her cheeks red from the nose down. Dirt was smudged on the one side of her face, and underneath her hand was a small cut he had noticed earlier. Even her cloths were dirty; the brown dirt mixing in with the ruby red liquid.

His head looked over her shoulder, looking at where she had run to him from. The pathway was peaceful and tranquil, hiding what had happened ever so well. Even with a deep, curious look, it was difficult to believe hell had broken loose just on the other side of the wall moments ago. His emerald eyes looked back to Faith, whose sniggering had ceased and she was looking at Gaignun. He sighed as the silence drew on; wiping her face until all the red, salty, bloodied tears had disappeared. Her eyes were still bloodshot, a few more tears lingered about around the red raw rims, yet she was holding them back strongly. Her skin was getting warmer as he kept touching it, his fingers gently smoothing over her skin, moving down to her hands. On the left arm, he saw something that made him gasp. Already fresh, lingering on the surface of her wrist were a few purple marks: bruises. Her eyes didn't need to follow his gaze to know what he was staring at.

His head shook, not believing what was going on. Drenched in blood, bruised and battered, her cloths dirty and her mind had been in such a hysterical state; something had happened. Again, in disbelief he shook his head. Anger swelled in his gut; why hadn't he heard her? Why hadn't he stayed with her like he promised he would do? Why did he always have to break such simple promises?

"_Just a simulator, right? Nothing will happen to me?"_

"_I promise,"_

No wonder she had been so silent. He opened his mouth to speak, to finally ask her what had happened again. He wanted to be firm this time, he wanted to know. She was so distraught, so upset that he _needed_ to know to _help_ her. But he couldn't help but feel in his gut something had happened to his brother. Maybe he was just being paranoid, but he was still worried. Or even Momo – something could've happened to her. But, no, Momo wouldn't have been able to put up a fight. Faith was much stronger then that little girl, she could over power her with ease. Especially if she figured out how to use those powers he had witnessed when she did it to her father. Taking out a grown man was one thing, and comparing that to a vulnerable twelve year old … Momo wouldn't have stood a chance.

Clearing his throat, he gained her attention again as she turned her head to him. "Faith, what happened? Why are you covered in so much blood?"

She wanted to play it out. Like hell he would believe her that Albedo Piazzolla had just gotten into the Encephalon, without a notification from Allen. The machine must've picked up an intruder, and Allen certainly would've told Gaignun. If not, this entire thing was seriously messed up. Faith let her lips curl up into a small smirk, as she looked down at the blood on her cloths. "What do you think happened, Gaignun?"

"Faith now isn't the time," he said, flicking her chin gently so she looked at him. There was a hint of desperation in his tone, in his eyes too that couldn't go unnoticed to Faith. "Please tell me what had happened, come on, I won't be mad."

The story didn't even have a reason for why he would get mad. Apart from that little, teeny tiny detail that she had split Albedo's chest but surely he wouldn't get mad at that. Faith breathed deeply, the deep breath soothed her beating heart as she shuffled from one foot to another. She glanced behind her shoulder, her eyes looking at the wall. She could see no blood from where she stood and no white headed Albedo, watching her with menacing eyes. Her golden gems looked at Gaignun as her fingers slid to his. She wrung her slightly sore fingers, from where she had grabbed the bark, around his ivory ones. Patiently, he waited for her to answer, wanting her to take her time. Then finally, she spoke. When the words were coming from her lips, her fingers held tighter onto his fingers.

"He's going to kill me," she whispered, her eyes shooting up to chaos, who she noticed was still stood there, his eyes looking away. Biting her lip gently, she looked to Gaignun again, whose brows were furrowed. "I hurt him badly, Gaignun. I'm screwed."

"Who Faith?" he asked, worried someone was around, bleeding to death. "Who did you hurt?"

"Albedo," she said, her voice crackling.

Gaignun couldn't help but frown, taken back by her words and confused at the same time. He tilted his head to the side, staring at her carefully. She couldn't have been lying, but she couldn't have been telling the truth either. "Faith … no one entered the Encephalon."

"Yes he did!" Faith abruptly yelled, not letting Gaignun add more to his sentence. She shook her head, squeezing her eyes shut tightly as she did so. Her hair flew as she shook her head quickly, trying not to take her anger out on him or anything. She held tightly onto Gaignun's hands, hers trembling with anger. "He did! Why won't you Goddamn believe me! He entered, and I fought him off."

"But," he sighed, looking down. He didn't know what to do, what to say. Was Albedo so cunning that he could trick the Encephalon? It could be him. Yes, Albedo was defiantly like that and Faith wouldn't lie. She had nothing to lie about. "Show me, Faith."

Lifting her head, she nodded. Her heart began to calm back down as there was that chance of Gaignun believing her. Gaignun smoothed his hand on her cheek, though the touch felt numb to her skin. As he stood up properly, keeping one hand intertwined with hers, he could feel the fear emitting off her skin. Faith took a step foreword, gulping as she did. If she was to see Albedo again she could fight him off, but it was just that look … that little look still sent shivers down her spine. Never had he given her such a disgusting a look before in her life.

He only gave her looks like that if he was going to harm her.

And that look was a million times worse then the rest she could compare it to. Death was surely coming her way if he caught her again.

"_Murderer."_

Her feet dragged across the smooth pavement, unlike Gaignun's. He kept his posture straight, holding a very adult-like stance. He wasn't swayed by what she had just told him, neither was he worried. He held her close; as if she were a little child just learning that the basement really wasn't a scary place at all. No matter how much he tried to think, he couldn't get his mind around it. Albedo couldn't have entered without the rest of them knowing. As his mind was deep in wonder about the entire thing, Faith's soothingly soft voice spoke. "Right here, Gaignun."

What he looked at caused him to frown. The little gap between the walls was large enough to just slip one person through at a time, something that he disliked as a kid. The gap was remembered greatly by him, though he had never used it. Often he spotted his white headed brother slipping through it, going on the other side of the wall, into the darkness of the forest. He couldn't understand, even to this day, why Albedo insisted on going deep into the forest. He didn't do it from birth; it was since the _incident_ that Gaignun had noticed him slipping through the gap, to be alone. Sure, Gaignun enjoyed his time alone away from his brothers at times, but he never went into the forest. Not even once to find out what Albedo was up to. It was a creepy place, and he felt rude for intruding. It was Albedo's private place; just like the library was Gaignun's and the music room was Rubedo's.

He stared at the wall, unsure of what to do or what to say. Only Albedo slipped in and out. Only he went inside and stayed there, isolating himself. No one else was allowed to follow. Thinking about it caused a little memory to come inside of Gaignun's head.

"_Ah! Albedo, where are you going?" Nigredo called, his voice covered in shock. He stopped halfway down the path, seeing his brother half going into the woods._

"_Where does it look like I'm going?!" Albedo snapped. He could almost, just almost, see a few tears on his brother's face sparkling in the light of the sun. They looked so morbid, yet so beautiful at the same time. There was always something fascinating about Albedo's tears. "I'm getting away from you and Rubedo! You're getting on my nerves."_

"_But Albedo," he denied, stepping foreword. He wanted to mention the tears, yet he knew how weak that would've made his older brother feel. "Rubedo will wonder where you are."_

"_He won't," Albedo snapped. He slid to the side, about to disappear into the shadows of the trees when Nigredo called him again._

"_Why do you go in there all the time?" he asked; his voice emotionless apart from the little drop of curiosity._

"_None of your business, Nigredo," Albedo harshly snapped._

"_But …" he sighed. "When will you be back?"_

"_Does it matter to you?" he shouted, disappearing off into the woods. "God, you're all so annoying!"_

This was _Albedo's_ sanctuary. Was it really that bad that Gaignun was snooping around? God he hoped not. Though the brothers had grown dramatically apart of the years, he still didn't want to betray Albedo by going into the only place he could be alone – a place he cared so deeply about.

As he slipped through the gap, he noticed a bloody hand on the wall, obviously not Faith's. The hand was too large to belong to the young woman, which caused him to look twice. There was defiantly someone else that had been around lately. The blood was fresh; Gaignun had touched it, leaving some to hang around on his finger. He wiped it off onto his black trousers, not to be seen again. Clearing his throat, feeling slightly anticipated about what his eyes might come across, he came into the woods properly.

His eyes scanned around calmly, while Faiths' darted about in an almost panicking manner. The wood was empty: without a sign of Albedo. Her hand slipped from his as the fear came out of her, not being able to see her white headed Master. But then she felt irritation. Gaignun wasn't going to believe her, was he? "I'm not a liar," she said firmly.

"I never called you such a thing," Gaignun said, glancing carefully around. It felt strange being there, and he wanted to get out as soon as he could. He moved slowly, old, dried up leaves crunched under his feet, making his head turn own to them. Then he saw it, the blood all over the ground. His eyes were wide as he stared at it, completely stunned. It was real, it had to have been. It was wet, sticky to the touch and when he leaned down to test whether it was wet or not, he could smell the strong stench in his nose, causing him almost to choke.

"I slit open his chest," she said, her voice so monotone and emotionless it caused Gaignun to turn around. "There was blood everywhere. He pissed me off so badly."

"Then where is he now Faith?" Gaignun seriously asked, standing in front of her. His eyes were wide, showing how important it was that he got the answer. He needed to make sure she was safe: yes, he believed that Albedo was there. He didn't see what reason Faith would have for lying.

"I don't know," she whispered, shaking her head.

"Faith I need you to think," he said, putting his hands firmly on her shoulders.

"I don't-" she shook her head. Her voice was cracking as she realized how screwed she would be if Albedo found her.

"Where is he?" he repeated, demanding an answer.

"I don't know," she shook her head again, the pressure getting to her.

"Then how do you know he was here?" he asked. This was so confusing, so unbelievable he couldn't believe it. He was so annoyed at Albedo, his brother, for returning to hurt Faith. He hated him so much for hurting her, for damaging her and causing her to hurt him. Though he didn't realize it, he was taking his anger out on Faith, demanding for an answer: his voice rising with each repetition. "Where is he Faith?!"

"I said I don't know!" she yelled, holding back the tears. He was terrifying her, his voice horrible when he yelled. She couldn't help but feel responsible for it all. "I don't know, I don't know, I don't know!"

"You have to know," he said. The anger and confusion had made him completely blind to how much he was hurting Faith: how much he was emotionally terrifying and pressuring her.

Faith swung her arms. "I don't know!" she yelled. "Get off me!"

She grabbed his right arm with her hand tightly, about to pull him off. Just then, she heard a cry from his throat, and a liquid could be felt running onto her fingers. His grip loosened off her shoulders, and her eyes widened: her heart began to pound quickly, her sight blurred and all she could see was the crimson liquid running onto her hand that was set on his ivory arm.

Faith didn't want to look. She couldn't bring herself to look. _'No, no. I didn't hurt him badly. I didn't harm him to the point he'll die. He's okay, he's okay.'_

Gaining courage after a split second of mentally panicking out of her mind, she snapped her gold eyes down to his arm. Just about her fingers was a five inch slit, going across his arm in a diagonal line. "Gaignun!!" she cried, tearing her bloodied hand off him. It wasn't deep, but it wasn't a nice cut either (not like any cuts were nice at all). The red liquid ran down his arm, his eyes staring at his wound for a few moments. He hissed painfully as he rolled up the sleeve of his shirt. The edges of the sleeves were stained in his blood. He pulled it up so that the rest wouldn't get drenched in his liquid. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a white handkerchief and gently began to wipe the blood away.

Faith watched in horror as he silently did that, unsure of what to say or what to do. She honestly didn't mean to harm Gaignun, it was the last thing she wanted to do. Staring, she was scared she would do it again. Her feet tried to walk away, yet her mind wouldn't let her. Instead, she made them take a step foreword. With her trembling, shaking hands she reached foreword and gently took the slightly bloodied fabric Gaignun's hand. He looked at her, confused as she eased it from his grip. His fingers let go of it, giving her possession of the item. Faith gestured for Gaignun to sit down, and he did so, leaning his back on the trunk of a tree.

Silently, she moved onto her knees, to the side of Gaignun. With gentle hands, she pushed the cloth onto his wound, making sure it would cover it all. She applied a little bit of pressure so the fabrics would absorb as much blood as they could. Her eyes looked down as she helped him, not wanting to look into his eyes. She was frightened what emotion might be in those alluring emerald gems: would he be unhappy? Would he hate her or even worse … would he be frightened? She sighed deeply, feeling extremely bad about the situation. Her spare hand was gently set on his toned arm, soothing over his skin to distract him from the stinging pain.

"I have a roll of bandages in my pocket …" she whispered, straightening her posture for a second so she could pull the roll from her pocket. She pulled out a safety pin as she did so, so she would be able to secure it around his wound. "This might sting."

"It's okay," he said, leaning the back of his head on the tree. He kept his eyes on her, watching her gently.

Faith took the cloth from his arm, wiping away the excess blood that had lingered around. She was able to see the cut better, without the distraction of all the blood. It was perfectly made, the split as if a knife had done it. It was slightly thick, not thin like a paper cut or something like that. Yes, her eyes were defiantly like knives to the flesh. Clearing her throat, taking herself from the thoughts, she began to unravel the rough bandage, wrapping it around his skin. She felt him flinch a little as she brought it tightly around his wound, yet he tried not to make any noises. She worked with a look of dismay on her face, which Gaignun quickly noticed.

He put a finger on her chin, flicking her face up like he always did. For once, since hurting him, they had locked eyes and what she saw caused her to smile. His eyes were happy, loving and understanding as they looked into hers. His voice was alluring as it always was, not that horrible, scary, loud one he had just used. "It's okay. Don't worry about it – I understand."

"I am sorry," she sheepishly whispered, lowering her eyes.

"Don't be," he said, his finger running across her jaw line. "I snapped and pressured you. I shouldn't have been so stupid to do that. Faith, I believe you about Albedo. I was just so terrified he'd harm you again, that …"

She had suddenly placed her index finger on his lips. Playfully, she looked into his eyes. "You explain yourself too much. Its okay, Gaignun. We're both sorry – we were both in the wrong, kay? That's the end. Now, let me sort out your wound before it starts bleeding everywhere again …"

He smirked as she lowered her finger, continuing to work softly on his arm. Once she had done, she patted his toned arm one final time, smiling. He seemed to be in no rush to move from the spot, though his eyes were off Faith. He was intrigued by the woods, wondering whatever had attracted Albedo to this place during his childish years. Once Faith had put the remains of her things back into her pocket, she moved, leaning her head on his shoulder. He stroked her hair gently as she sat there, his eyes still focused on the forest.

Faith followed his gaze, frowning a little. "What are you thinking about?"

"Albedo …" he answered quietly.

There was a little shuffle from the area she and Gaignun had gone through to get to the forest. She moved her head, turning quickly from where the noise had appeared from. Her eyes met with a cloud of white hair, and grey uniformed cloths. This time as she watched the younger Albedo come into the forest, she wasn't frightened. She was more curious as he paced around, his feet crunching the leaves that lay on the dirty, forest floor. Gaignun too seemed curious about this. He carefully watched his brother, looking at his face carefully.

Yes, his cheeks were again tear streamed. It wasn't hard to guess what Albedo had been crying about. Learning he wasn't going to die, unlike Gaignun and Jr had put a huge toll on Albedo's sanity and daily state. He cried often, snapped at people and he was turning crazy. With bright emerald eyes, Gaignun watched as his older brother slumped to the ground, digging his fingers deep into the dirt, covering his pale fingers with dirt that stuck under his nails. He sat with his legs tucked under himself, staining his grey uniform with the dark dirt. He dug his fingers deep as he could, until the cool soil reached his knuckles, then he pulled it upwards. After a few more times of doing this, Gaignun could just about see what Albedo was doing, yet Faith had spoken before he did.

"He's … digging holes …?" she asked him, not quite believing the sight. She lifted her head off Gaignun's shoulder, watching the young Albedo carefully.

"They're graves …" Gaignun breathed.

Faith turned to him, raising a brow. "Graves? Whatever makes you think that?"

"Look," he gently said, pointing to a mound near Albedo. Two sticks had been placed by it, wrapped together with a torn up piece of purple ribbon. The sticks were put together almost in the shape of a cross. "Graves."

Faith frowned, feeling a little bit disturbed by the younger Albedo's … "hobby". She shivered a little as she continued to watch him, her eyes curious.

**Comments –**

Yeah 'nother chapter (I had the day off today so I've been writing my ass off though they're pretty crummy chapters if you ask me). I particularly enjoyed writing this, for some bizarre reason and I honestly don't know how I managed to write quite a bit, when hardly anything has happened. Um, yeah, I do hope you guys like it! Plus, I want to ask the readers for a little bit of advise. Should I add a little of Nigredo's past into here? I'd like to do it for the fun, besides it could add for a little bit of effect on Gaignun (i.e disturbing him etc). But I wasn't sure whether it would be a little bit odd. I've gotta get them out of the Encephalon soon, it's probably annoying everyone XD I didn't intend for it to go on this long, but I'd like to add some more Faith, and of course Gaignun if anyone likes that idea. Again, thanks for taking the time to read and review if you do! :3


	17. Fall Apart, Start Again

**Comments –**

I understand that this is no excuse whatsoever, but reasons for this quite … bad chapter are for the fact I've had a few … family issues lately between me and my Step Dad. So, my minds been all distracted and stuff and I'm sure I'm gonna regret putting this up but meh: I needed to write something to take my mind off the things, so I hope you guys still enjoy it and don't mind the crummyness.

**|| Chapter [Seventeen] ||**

**Fall Apart, Start Again**

'_Why the hell did you kill her?!' _her mothers distraught voice ran through her head as she stared at Albedo, her eyes glazing as she was pulled into yet another memory she wouldn't let herself escape from. She felt Gaignun softly breathing besides her, and never had she been so grateful the man couldn't read into her mind. All the memories would most likely drive him away: she was frightened they would. She would never, ever tell him what was running through her thoughts. She wouldn't allow her old self to get in the way of her and Gaignun.

'_Mom, she said she was lonely!'_ the younger Faith whined, clenching her fists so tight her little knuckles were turning white. She almost cried the word 'lonely' as if it were a difficult thing for her to do. The younger, about thirteen years old Faith had her pastel pink, red streaked hair, reaching her elbows. Soon, her fists clung to these locks tightly, trembling as they held onto them. Her face had a few streaks of blood on it, and a small cut above her lip that was still wet with her liquid.

'_That doesn't mean you can kill her!!'_ her mother gasped, grabbing onto the kitchen chair for support as her body began to feel weak. She kept her eyes locked with her daughters ice blue gems, reading her carefully. The younger Faith couldn't understand why her mother was looking at her so carefully, yet the older Faith could understand. Her mother was studying her, trying to pick out signs that could detect the sadistic side was pulling through: putting her life in danger.

'_Everyone else had died, mom. It's unfair leaving her alone,' _she continued, her fingers wrapping tighter around her hair, tighter and tighter. Her eyes glazed to the floor as she began to breathe deeply, trying to hold herself together. _'No one deserves to be alone. I helped her mom: I helped to take her to Heaven, where her family are.'_

Faith let her head fall on Gaignun's shoulder again as she stared. Picking up on a strange, almost saddened emotion from Faith, he turned his head to her, gently placing a hand on her chin. Biting onto his lip, he breathed out a deep, difficult breath. His heart began to pound as he tightly shut his eyes, forcing himself to do it. It was a decision he was dreading, but it would be good for her – it would take her mind off things. And maybe, just maybe, if he got lucky nothing would show. He moved his hand from her chin, winding his fingers around hers, and then he exhaled, opening his eyes slowly.

He spoke, his voice husky and alluring, though there was a bad feeling behind it Faith could just about pick him: he was struggling to speak. "Let's take a walk around the Institute, shall we? It may take your mind off things, and we will have a chance to meet up with Jr."

She paused, looking at him. Eventually, she nodded her head, some of her pink locks moved to cover her left eye, tickling her skin. Smiling gently at her, he stood to his feet, brushing off the bits of dirt from his trousers. He checked his arm quickly, looking at the great job Faith had done. He grinned, impressed, before reaching his arm down to help her stand to her feet. With his aid, she was soon on her heels, straightening out her blood stained, now dry, cloths.

"Watching Albedo isn't helping me much," Gaignun began: his voice still alluring as he kept his hand held onto Faith's. "I cannot understand _why_ he's digging graves."

"Do you want to understand?" Faith asked him, looking into his emerald eyes deeply. "Do you truly wish to understand, or are you too frightened to?"

He sighed: she caught him. Putting a hand on his temple, leading them out of the dark and gloomy forest, he began to speak. "I cannot help but feel partly responsible for whatever he is going through. There could've been things I could've done as a child, to help him."

"There is nothing to do with the inevitable," she said, looking up to the pure blue sky. "Albedo will have gotten crazy, with or without you. When one is forced to live alone, without their family or without their loved ones, they will go crazy and want to die. In Albedo's case, he panicked early. He did not savour those precious moments, instead he changed. The grave diggings … they're yours and Rubedo's, do you know that?"

Gaignun froze in horror as his eyes moved down to Faith. In disbelief he shook his head. "N-no, they can't be," he whispered, trying to keep himself together. Already he had lost control of his emotions to Faith, which was terrible, but he didn't want to show her _fear_ and _shock_. He had to stay strong for her; otherwise God knows what she'd think.

"Let yourself go," she said, stepping foreword. "You might as well – I can feel the fear."

Biting his lip, he breathed out deeply. God, why did she have to be so smart?! He couldn't feel a hint of anger towards this; her sensitivity to other people's feelings was something he loved about her. Opening his mouth to speak, he was quickly interrupted by another voice.

"Ma poupee,"

A little gasp escaped her throat as the voice entered her head, sending shivers down her spine. Her body trembled as she shook: her entire body to be engulfed in pure ice cold, before disappearing after the voice had escaped her ears. Pausing for a moment, all of her surroundings were immediately forgotten about as she found herself clinging tighter to Gaignun, refusing to let her body fall limp. That voice, he couldn't be there. Gulping, she moved her eyes to the side of her, catching her white headed Master, leaning casually against the wall; his arms folded and his face glowing with a mad smirk.

Gaignun's face immediately became serious as he stared at Albedo, glaring firmly at him. Protectively, he pulled Faith a little back, holding tightly onto her. Albedo looked deep into Gaignun's emotionless eyes, slowly moving down to his injured arm. Once he took in the information that Gaignun had been injured, in quite an interesting way too, he couldn't help but laugh out. His menacing laugh caused completely different emotions to spark through Faith and Gaignun's veins. He felt angry towards his brother for being so cruel to Faith, for just being in front of him: how he wished to set his fist into that jaw, and stop him from laughing for good. But in complete contrast, Faith felt intimidated; almost fearful of Albedo though she knew she could protect herself, and even Gaignun.

Finally, after a long pause of laughter, he spoke. "Hah, I see that girl has been slicing you up too," he cast a disappointed look to Faith, though it was just a mask. He truly felt _happy_ that she had injured his brother. "Be warned with that one. The Devil is how I see her."

Faith gritted her teeth, finally feeling anger towards Albedo. She stepped foreword, still gripping Gaignun's hand tightly. "And once wasn't the Devil an angel of Heaven? A companion of God himself?"

"Slanderous rumours," Albedo laughed. "Nothing to be too sure about, ma poupee. Though, I cannot quite call you the Devil can I? Much too responsibility: no I do believe if you play any part in this play of life that you will be the Reapers Doll."

Forcing herself to tut, she pulled herself into the little game. "Just his doll?" she sounded disappointed, making Gaignun cast his eyes down to her. "How sad … I do believe I am capable of much more then that. Hell, I could even _beat_ the Reaper at his own game if I wish."

"Beat the reaper?" he laughed. "The man does not walk the earth!"

"Oh he does," Faith said: her voice so serious, so cold it made Gaignun frown slightly. She took another step foreword, her fingers slipping from Gaignun's grip. "And that's you, _Albedo_. You're the damn Reaper, in some wretched disguise. Immortality, a cruelty and a lust for blood – does that all add up to you?"

"If I am the Reaper, that does make sense," he smirked. "Finding as you are ma poupee."

"I am _not_ your Goddamn Poupee!!" she screamed, swinging her arms again. "You're just a damned Killer that claimed me at one point. I _never_ worked with you; I never worked with the Reaper."

"Who said that they necessarily had to work together?" he laughed. "As long as the act of the killing of the humans, sending them to their resting place, is fulfilled, who is to say who works together? For that is all that humans work towards, do you not think? They work towards their death … that is all."

"And what do _you_ work towards?" she glared. "You're just proving how inhuman you really are, Albedo."

His amused face suddenly turned into one of sheer anger towards the young woman. Faith found herself biting her lip, regretting the words that she had said. Albedo quickly stepped foreword; she could feel the anger emitting from his skin as he reached to strike her.

Gaignun quickly raced ahead of Faith, setting his body in front of hers as protection: a barrier between Albedo's strike and her small, frail yet priceless body. She gasped, not expected his movement, rather expecting the hit from Albedo. Instantly, she put her hands foreword, reaching to grab Gaignun and pull him away. He shouldn't have been protecting her; this was between Albedo and Faith. Gaignun's life was much more important then her murderous, messed up one. But just as her fingers opened out from their fists, to grab his shirt, they grabbed the thin air instead; Gaignun's body had been moved, and a devastating yell had left his lips from pain. Faith stared in horror as Albedo hit his weaker brother with such strength; it sent him down to the floor, a few feet to the side of Faith.

Her voice was small, useless cry as she watched her love being hit with such tremendous force. "Gaignun!"

Albedo's attention had been taken from Faith, now his eyes were set on the black headed man, who lay on the floor, choking a little. He had expected the hit, having set his body in front of Faith to protect her, yet he hadn't expected it to be so painful and strong. Gaignun had always known how strong Albedo was: even during their childhood years Albedo was much stronger then the smaller, less psychically trained and experienced Gaignun. His body ached, pain coursing through his bones as he moved, trying to move to his feet. He choked a little, coughing out his blood onto the pavement, leaving the wet crimson liquid to be sprayed there.

"No, leave him be!" Faith desperately cried, moving foreword.

Gaignun heard the desperate cry of Faith, then the scurry of her feet. He cleared his throat, bringing up strength to speak. "Faith, stay back," he ordered; his voice harsh, though for good reason. He didn't want her getting injured by Albedo, who had yet to strike her with force.

Moving quickly, Gaignun turned his body around, seeing the trembling Faith in the corner of his eyes, and his older, extremely annoyed brother standing just a few feet to the side of him. His knuckles were crusted with the blood from his wound Faith had given him earlier, his eyes showing so much madness, so much anger that it even made Gaignun tremble. Picking up on this bit of fear emitting from Gaignun, Albedo could only laugh: completely and utterly amused by scaring his brother so.

"Tsk, tsk, Nigredo," he spoke; his voice deep and terrifying, yet Gaignun was holding it together. He had to stay strong, and he wouldn't let the bastard play into him like that. It was just a game, just a game Albedo wanted to play. He didn't want to hurt him, or Faith: he only wanted fear. Okay, maybe he wanted to hurt them a little, but never enough to kill him. _Surely._

"Albedo," Gaignun's voice was quiet, rough from the pain he was experiencing. There was a bit of blood clinging to his lips, which slowly began to run down his cheek: Gaignun ignored it or either didn't feel the warm liquid running down his skin. "Don't do anything you'll regret."

"Regret?" he repeated, raising a brow. He moved to stand over Gaignun, his shadow overcastting him. "Oh I've wanted to do this for years, Nigredo! You made me _sick!_ You're a pathetic, pathetic brother and I don't see why you should get to see darling Rubedo all the time. Finally, the board is working in my favour. I get to kill you, and hurt her at the same time."

"You wouldn't dare," he glared, furious at his brother yet terrified for Faith's safety.

"Oh, I would, Nigredo," he smirked then showed a crooked smile.

Albedo reached down, grabbing his brother's head and then slamming it down onto the pavement with ease, making Gaignun cry out. Faith gasped, her eyes widening. There was a bone chilling crack that split through the silence after Albedo's second go at slamming Gaignun's head. The force had caused Gaignun's skull to split at the back; the break causing blood to pump from his head at an even, yet painful rhythm. Too weak to do anything, Gaignun lay there, breathing deeply; his thoughts of Faith as he stared his madman brother in the eyes. Albedo groaned, unsatisfied by how little he was getting out of Gaignun. He moved, and then kicked his brother's chest, sending him a few feet away.

Gaignun groaned as he felt more pain come into his weak body. Wanting to finish off the job, Albedo took a step foreword, but then stopped the instant Faith stood in front of him. Her arms were out wide, protecting Gaignun's body. Her eyes were desperate, drenched in tears as she looked at Albedo. She couldn't care if he was enjoying the fear he was giving her; she couldn't give a damn. Her arms were trembling as she stood in front of the man, her heart pounding faster then it ever had done before. But she was forcing herself: forcing herself to face it all for Gaignun.

She gulped, breathing deeply. Eventually, after the long moment of stunned silence, she spoke: her voice cracking at the beginning, but then becoming stronger as she continued to speak. "Leave him be, I know you want me. If you leave him, not harm him, I'll let you have me, Albedo. I'll give you a fight worth remembering: you can kill me the ultimate way you've always wanted me to."

His shocked face turned into one of a grin. Her voice was muffled to Gaignun, yet he could just about hear; making a weak gasp escape his throat. He tried to move, he didn't want her to get her; he didn't want her to die. God, how he hated himself! How could he be so stupid? He lay there, too weak to move, too weak to speak.

"The deal is you leave him be," she said. Then she leaned foreword, bringing her face close to Albedo's, so that her voice could be heard at a low whisper. "And you knock him out so he cannot hear anything."

Albedo stared at her, contemplating the deal for a while. After a few moments of watching her through amused eyes, he nodded. _'This will cause more sorrow to Gaignun then I could ever do by killing him. Haha, and my little poupee will die as well,'_ he smirked. "How fabulous. I accept your deal, ma poupee."

"Knock him out then," she ordered; her voice strong. She wiped away the remaining tears as she moved to the side, eyeing Albedo carefully.

Faith turned her head to Gaignun, not wanting to look at his terrified face. He would've heard everything, and one look would have reduced her back to tears and fear. She had to do this for Gaignun. If she could save his life, in exchange for hers, it would be brilliant. Hearing Albedo's step close towards him, she shut her eyes tightly, hearing a little groan from Gaignun as Albedo knocked him out. She refused to know how, though she had a hunch. He'd knocked her out many times before, from just simply hitting her head. After a few minutes of standing, just breathing deeply, she felt Albedo's menacing eyes set on her, waiting for her to conduct herself.

"Come on, ma poupee," he grinned. "Time to do your side of the deal. Or are you too much of a coward to face death?"

She gritted her teeth. "No, never. I am not a coward." She wished that she could agree with her words, yet inside she was more frightened then she ever had been before. But she held it in, opening and turning her emotionless eyes to Albedo. She sighed, taking a step back. Her body felt like jelly as she gulped, looking at Albedo's mad face: her executioners face

He smirked as he watched her for long seconds, before lunging foreword, and hitting her frail chest with his strong hands. Faith cried out as she felt her bones clicking. With such a strong hit, she was knocked into the wall, with another little cry to leave her throat. Slowly, she slid to the floor, her body shaking in pain, her eyes screwed shut. He grabbed her before she had time to react; hitting her head with such force she too was knocked out.

* * *

And then he had dragged her into his old bedroom in the Institute; the one that looked _exactly_ like the bedroom he had at U-TIC. She had awakened, he had harmed her; raped her.

After recalling all that had happened before that point, she realized her fate. She remembered what she was doing, back in hands of Albedo. Yet, she wouldn't be in his hands for much longer. After doing what he had wished to do: pulling the girl inches away from her death, he undid the barbed wire around her wrists and the materiel around her ankles; freeing her: though she was too weak, in too much pain to do anything. Grinning, Albedo stood to his feet, placing his cloths back over his slightly blood covered pale skin. He looked down at her, his once little porcelain doll and sighed.

"You're so beautiful," he whispered, placing an unwanted hand on her cheek. "It's too bad we had to do this, don't you think?"

"For … Gaignun …" she managed to whisper. He smirked.

"He doesn't love you," he smirked, throwing a shirt and skirt to her. Another set, but where the hell had he gotten them? Did he have it all planned out?

"You're a bastard …" Faith weakly whispered, moaning as he began to dress her. The fabrics stuck to her wounds, soon the clean cloths were drenched in her quickly releasing blood. Once he had fully changed her, he moved out of the room, but then stopped at the doorway.

He sighed deeply, as if saddened by the near death of Faith. "What a waste of a life … ma poupee …"

Faith moaned as he left the room, heading to somewhere else in the Encephalon. Gathering all the strength she had, she rolled onto her side, feeling an immense stinging flush throughout her entire body. She cried, feeling the tears running down her face. God it hurt, it hurt so much. Too weak to clench her fists, all she could do was to force herself to sit up. "Ahh …" she groaned deeply as she pushed herself to sit properly, slowly pushing her legs over the blood stained bed.

With her feet on the cold ground, she tried to stand on them. But, this had failed. The poor, injured girl ended up silently falling to her knees: the only sound that was made was the loud banging of her bones landing on the cold floor. Sobbing from the pain, she tried to hold it in as she glanced to her left. Gasping, she almost jumped as she saw him; Gaignun lying on the floor. Albedo had dragged him in? But for what purpose? So she could die with him in her presence? Not thinking properly, she couldn't understand the reasons for Albedo's actions nor did she really have the energy to.

Bloodied, stinging and moaning in pain, Faith's breathing was getting slower and slower, yet deeper and deeper as the seconds drew on. With all her strength, she crawled over to where Gaignun lay, still unconscious by Albedo's hit. With bloodied tears staining her cheeks, she moved her sore and battered body to lie beside his. She placed her hand on his cheek, leaving a mark of her blood on his beautiful ivory skin. She rested most of her body onto his; her crimson liquid staining his white shirt. Her heart was pounding slowly, her body aching so badly she couldn't handle it. She was crying, not sobbing, but silently letting the beautiful, salty tears go as she stared at her peaceful beloved. Her fingers shaking, she wiped away his blood from his chin, smudging it with her own, yet she was too weak to do anything about it. Though she wanted him to be awake, to tell her it would all be okay, she didn't want him to see her drenched in her own blood, bleeding to death painfully.

_To die for the one I love … It's the only thing left I can do._

_My life will be taken for Gaignun, for the one I love, for the one who loves me._

_It's the only thing a murderous girl like me can do – the only right choice I have made within my life._

_I do not expect to be forgiven …_

_I do not expect to rid of the Sin's I have done …_

_Gaignun's life is more important then mine, I understand that. This is how the story ends._

Faith gently laid her head on Gaignun's rising and falling chest, being soothed by his heart beat. Tears began to stream her face faster: this was what she had given herself up for and it sounded beautiful. Never had she appreciated someone's life as much as she did then. He would live, she would die.

_Everyone wins. The murderer will die, whilst the innocent, fantastic one will live._

As her eyes slowly began to shut, her sight beginning to fade and the pain turning into a dull stinging ache, she wrapped her fingers around Gaignun's. "I … love you …" she managed to whisper before shutting her eyes gently.

_My life in exchange for his._

_The one I love more then anything else or anyone else in this morbid world …_

_For __**him.**_

**Comments:**

I hated writing this chapter. It was so FREAKING HARD linking it back to Chapter 10. So, incase no one understands, Albedo had taken Faith back to HIS old room in the Institute, though it looked entirely like his room at U-TIC. He ended up harming her, like we saw IN chapter 10, and then this links from the memories she was recalling to this moment in time. Got it? Please, if there's something wrong, tell me. I expect EVERYONE to hate this chapter, mostly because of the crummyness so I'm uber sorry. I hope you guys still enjoyed it =)


	18. Simple Guilt

**|| Chapter [Eighteen] ||**

**Simple Guilt**

_It was his entire fault. He was the one to blame. Him, him, him._

Leaning his elbows on the cool desk, his hands pushed firm on his face, he forced his eyes to shut as he blocked out the silent world. A cloud of guilt ran through his veins as he forced the tears back. He could feel the tips of his fingers dampening from underneath the rim of his eyes, where they were pushing into his skin gently. The office he sat in was empty; light bright from the window behind him. The beautiful streets of Miltia worked busy behind him as he sat the, head in hands, feeling his heart pounding painfully with each beat. He felt as if he was suffocating from the amount of guilt he could feel. His lungs were stiff, hardly letting any air into them as he breathed deeply and roughly, holding back a sob with each breath. He wouldn't let himself grow weak: he had to compose himself for the work he had to do. Yes work – he had to focus his mind on that. Slowly, he brought his hands from his face; his skin a little red from where he had held onto it with his warm hands, and placed his palms onto the cool desk. His eyes were glazed for a few moments as he looked at the silver desk, his eyes scanning the keyboard to his computer though most of the letters, symbols and numbers were blurred as he stared in thought. He didn't realize it, but even under the black blazer he wore, his skin was still trembling. Since the previous day, the incident, he couldn't get warm. No matter what he did.

Forcing himself to move, knowing it would take his mind of her, he pushed himself to the side a little on his chair, moving to the draw attached to his desk. Sliding open the draw, he pulled out a pile of about three dozen sheets, all neatly put together in a pile. Holding back a sigh, he placed the papers on the desk, reaching for a black pen. The small item felt light in his fingers of his right hand, and then he could see him shaking. Gaignun held tighter onto the pen, trying to stop his fingers from unconsciously shaking. He didn't know whether it had something to do with his emotions or if it was because of the fact he couldn't get damn warm. This time he let the sigh escape his lips; the air weakly left his lungs as he parted his lips slightly, moving his eyes down to the work. He had to force himself to read, he had to do it.

_My fault. It was my fault._

Just as he was about to read the first word, a flash of a memory came into his mind. He was sore, laying on the ground, his back stiff from the hard floor. He felt something wet lying above his body, the stench of blood filling his nose as he sat there, groggy and confused of what was going on. And then he saw her: her battered and bruised body, covered in dozens of slices … her eyes shut … her body crimson red …

Shaking his head, he forced the image from his mind. Breathing deeply, he concentrated on the work. Just as his eyes read the words, he noticed how everything was filled in. The writing was large, curly and cute: it was beautiful. There were no capital letters, the writing almost childish with a hint of feminism to it. A wave of irritation came over the young man as he stared at the papers, already filled out for him. The guilt had weaved itself into a strange anger as she realized someone had filled out the paper work for him. He wasn't sure whether he was angry at that person who did it (though he was positive they did it for good reason) or for the fact he wouldn't have anything to do.

And then without thinking about it, he fiercely pushed the pile of sheets off his desk. The paper flew off the edge, flying through the air, mixing with one another, until they finally, randomly, landed in different spots on the once tidy floor. Gaignun stared at the papers, not knowing where the sudden anger had come from. A tear rolled down his face as he collapsed his head into his arms, tucking his face into his sweet smelling sleeves. They were uncontrollable, the salty tears that ran from his eyes. Though he was perfectly silent as he cried, never had he let tears run from his eyes so quickly. Never had the raven headed man been so unable to control his emotions; usually he was so composed, so collective it was unbelievable. And though his office, and probably the entire floor, was empty, he still couldn't help but feel exposed as he cried into his arms. He wouldn't let himself cry for long though. A good few minutes, yeah that would be okay.

Once those minutes had passed, he lifted his heavy head up slowly, wiping his eyes with a Kleenex he pulled from the box. His cheeks were streamed with tears, and though he told himself to stop, an extra two rolled down slowly; ending his little weep. Sighing, he threw the scrunched up Kleenex into the bin, setting his elbows onto the table. After staring at the papers, as if that would make them pick themselves up, he stood to his feet, pushing the chair behind him. His legs were a little weak as he stood, but as he did, he finally felt warm. Sliding his blazer off his body, he looked at his bandaged arm; the work she had done for him yesterday. He treasured her nursing deeply, though it had been her that caused the injury. Strangely, he prayed it would scar: a lovely scar that would remind him of her, though it sounded weird. He had refused to let anyone tend to it, wanting to keep the bandage there as long as he could.

Slowly, he moved onto the opposite side of his desk, crouching down to the papers. He sighed as he brought them together, being able to see the work that had been done for him. The corners of his lips creased as he showed a small, weak smile; his emerald eyes glancing at every word that had been wrote in the pretty, black, writing. Though he wasn't bothering to read the words, he concentrated on the handwriting itself: as if it was a little pattern; each letter an intricate pattern to itself, and it caused the smile to broaden. Having the papers together, he set them on the desk, and then stood up properly. His emerald eyes looked weary to the clock, ticking away on the wall. It was half five, the sun setting in the sky: casting the beautiful orange light to seep into his office. Surely, it would be time to go home: no one would mind. Tomorrow they would depart; he couldn't care where but at that moment in time he wanted to go home. He needed his bed, his familiar surroundings where everything managed to somehow smell of her.

His brother was a bastard – that was the kindest way to put it. Never would he think of Albedo with a sheer stab of anger running through his heart: never would he be able to see his brother without the urge to attack him. And though he knew attacks against Albedo would be pointless, for he couldn't die, he knew he wouldn't be able to contain himself. Though Gaignun blamed himself quite a bit for all the things that happened, Albedo was still the one who did it.

As he wrapped his jacket back on his body, he felt his fingers trembling as he did the buttons back up. Even though he noticed, he didn't care – he ignored it, knowing there would be nothing that could ease him. Wiping his eyes, he moved over to the door, pausing for a few moments. He prayed no one would see him, though most people would know to leave the leader alone. What happened to her had gone around the entire Foundation, leaving no one in the dark. People would know how saddened Gaignun would be; how distraught he felt, and thankfully that meant they would leave him be. Again he wiped his eyes, making sure they were dry though the rims were red and sore: slightly puffy from his little cry earlier. He breathed a steady breathe, making his heart calm down a little. Finally, he pushed the button to open the door and exited his office.

Stepping quietly and slowly, he turned down the hall, his head hung slightly, which was unlike him. His movement wasn't as fluid, as graceful as it once was; he was slow, his toes dragging a little with each step and his knuckles on his right hand grazed gently on the cool wall. He didn't have the energy to move, hell he didn't have the energy to do most things. The guilt was weighing him down so bad he feared it would crush him.

_My fault, my fault, my fault – I am to blame._

Slowly, his hand clenched into a fist as he became angry with himself. Why did he have to be so weak? Gaignun walked down the stairs quickly, passing a few people as he did. He felt their eyes on him, yet he didn't even look in their direction, not knowing who had passed. Man or woman; he didn't know. The only thing that told him someone had passed was the sound of their footsteps and the feeling of their eyes searching him; most likely sorrowfully looking at him as inside he ate himself away, blaming himself for everything. He moved out of the building, to the outside. The sun was quickly setting, signalling the time for night to arrive. He shivered as the air brushed against him. Sliding his hand into his pocket, he pulled out a silver key and unlocked the door to his car, getting in and taking off his blazer once he had shut the door.

He threw his jacket on the seat beside him when he froze.

"_They're only brownies, Gaignun – not much but they looked so yummy I had to get you some."_

"_I brought you them."_

"_That was very kind of you."_

Clearing his throat, he reached back picking up the small, pink, strong bag he had left in the car yesterday. A little smile came on his face as he brought the bag onto his lap, sitting properly on his seat. His emerald eyes stared at the bag for a few long minutes, his mind overfilling with her. Putting the bag on the chair beside him, he decided to keep them for later so he could eat them then. Maybe when he was hungry: the emotions that were in his heart had changed his appetite dramatically and somehow he had managed to survive the stressful day on just cups of coffee and half an apple. Turning on the car, he drove smoothly through the streets of the Foundation, heading for his home.

He had a house on the quieter side, close to his and Jr's private beach. It was a three story home, with wooden panelling, making it look warm. The porch was dark brown, with a matching bench on it. A few green and pink flowers had recently been put there, and he couldn't help but sigh at them as he parked the car in the drive. He switched off the car with a click, and then let his eyes gaze up at the house. The curtains were wide open, the door probably unlocked. On the top floor, he could see a window open slightly, a little crack to let in some fresh air. He reached for his blazer, and grabbed the bag before getting out of the car, locking it behind him.

A few orange leaves crunched under his feet as he made his way to the porch; the season Fall was just around the corner, meaning the air would get colder and the world would soon look like it was dying. Gaignun didn't care: he didn't care about anything apart from her as he walked up the steps, standing in front of the door. His feet stopped moving as he looked at the door, his hand just on the handle, trembling as he held onto it loosely.

When he had seen her, lying on her like that he suddenly shot up, almost slamming his bleeding head on the wall behind him. Panic over took him; it was so strong he thought he was going to stop breathing. His heart pounded quickly as he stared at the girl, a little stunned from the sight. Was he dreaming? He could've sworn his was but that throbbing pain in his head was telling him opposite. He pulled the little, bleeding girl up as he sat up and shook her gently.

"_Wake up!!!"_ he had begged, tears streaming his face. _"Fay, wake up. Wake up, wake up, wake up!"_

The tears had began to flow from his eyes again as he stared at the door, feeling them drip off his chin to land on the porch. _"Thanks. I'll be okay though, I promise." _A little bit of anger came into his heart. No, she lied; she hadn't been okay. She had promised she was okay, but because of _his_ damn weakness, she hadn't been! Slamming his fists onto the door, he held back a scream of anger. He _hated_ himself more then anything or anyone else in the world! Why didn't he just drag her out when he could? Fuck her little tantrums and childish behaviour. He couldn't care if it would've made her feel weak, she'd have been okay.

But no … he couldn't think like that. It was wrong to think of his darling Faith in such away. Mentally, he scolded himself. She was the strongest person he had ever met in his entire life. She had gone through all that, she had watched her murderous past and went through pain for Gaignun. The girl was not weak, nor should she be slated for because she didn't wish to be. The anger slowly left his heated body as he pulled his fists off the door; the tears still running down his cheeks at a continuous rate. Exhaling, he let out that last bit of anger before lifting his head and wiping his face with the back of his hand.

He pushed open the door, smirking as he realized it was open. He entered the lit house, closing the door behind him. The hall he stood in was red; like the rest of the home, painting and decorated to give it a warm look. The stairs were on the opposite end, near the door to the kitchen. Hanging his blazer up on the peg, he pushed his shoes off his feet, and removed his tie: hanging it with his blazer. He heard a little bang, making his head snap towards the stairs. Curiosity grabbed a hold of him as he moved over to them, his brow furrowed a little.

The stairs creaked under his feet, moaning as he stood on each one, to the second floor. The house was eerily quiet, yet it had the sense of someone inside it apart from him. Unnerved by this feeling, Gaignun looked around; each door to the rooms was shut firmly; the window on top of the stairs was open partly, and he shut it, stopping the cold air from coming into the warm house.

"Meant to be sleeping," he couldn't help but mumble as he reached down to pick up a silver feather that rested on the floor. He put the silver feather on the window ledge where he remembered it had been in the morning, before it got swept down from the wind. His heart suddenly began to pound as he heard the creak of a door behind him; his head instantly snapping to where the noise had come from.

And there she stood.

Her hands were gripping onto the door frame as she stared at Gaignun, her eyes a peculiar shade as they stared into his emerald ones. Painted gold, they had another colour added into the mixture: a sharp, light ice blue. The ice blue was like a messy, sharp ring between her black pupil and gold; both colours in the mix. On the right eye was a red dot in the white, a few bloodshot veins emitting from it. Her eyes were bright, despite the tired look plastered on her face. Her hair was the same pink and red; limp and lifeless as it rested on her shoulders. She wore one of his long sleeved white shirts, which was much too big for her. The material was loose on her skin and she had ended up pulling the sleeves up to her elbows. He could just about see her black underwear under the shirt; it was so long it covered it by a few inches. And then he could see it all: the marks on her legs, the cuts, the bruises and the damages Albedo had done to her.

Suddenly, he turned his head around, gasping from the sight. A wave of guilt came over him again as he shut his eyes, putting a hand on the window ledge. All that pain, all that just for him. God, he felt terrible – he should've been the one to be there for her. And then he realized how horrible he was being, with his head turned to her. Turning back around, he gasped.

The girl had gone: the door was shut.

"F-Fay …?" he couldn't help but whisper as he stood up properly, moving to the door. Had he hurt her feelings that badly by looking away?

Knocking on the door, he didn't wait for an answer. He pushed it open, looking into the room. It extremely neat, the bed made perfectly and everything in order. Her smell of lilies entered his nose as he walked into his room, looking left to right: for a sign of her. The wardrobe was empty, apart from his cloths; the bathroom empty, yet cleaner then he had realized in the morning. The room was _empty_ with no sign of her.

"Fay?" he called, leaving the perfect room behind. Confusion came in his head as he searched the second floor thoroughly, checking wardrobes, and cupboards and even under the few other beds in the guest rooms. He was desperate: desperate to find her, to hold her and tell her he was sorry.

But after half an hour … she was no where to be found.

The house was empty; each floor there was no one to be found. _His fault, his fault, his fault. _Dragging his feet down the stairs, Gaignun stared to the floor, deep in thought. All he could think about was how it was his fault; his fault and his fault only. Because of him, she had gone through pain, she had cried, so had bled: she had gone. There was nothing he could do, but be weak and sleep through the entire thing. Tears again began to silently stream from his face as he slowly took his last step, moving down the hall a little. Unsure of what to with himself, he sat on the step, head in hands.

**Comments -** Yeah, a quick chapter because i wanted to prove it wasn't the end of the story, though to be honest I had intended Chapter Seventeen to be the end XD But then I thought "Man, thats a pretty lame ending," so here you go~ Bitter Sweet continued. I hope you enjoy and thankies for reading and reviewing if you do! =)


	19. Chase!

**Comments:** Not a great chapter, but I wanted to get back into the storyline of Faith~ Hope you enjoy~ Sorry for any mistakes - I sorta rushed it xP

**|| Chapter [Nineteen] ||**

**Chase!**

He stood slowly, as if his entire body was made of stone. From the despair in his heart, he felt like his entire body was going to fall down: that he carried a huge weight in his heart, which he of course did. Sitting on the step had only made him think; think about how much he was to blame for the hurt Faith had been forced to experience. Exhaling deeply, he rolled the sleeves of his white shirt up to his elbows and stepped onto the wooden floor. Blinking a few times, he realized how dark it was getting outside: time seemed to have flown by as he stayed seated on the step, falling into a silly state of despair where he would blame himself for it all. Getting energy, he managed to rub his hand in his silky black hair and take a step foreword. He was about to head to the kitchen when the sound of a beautiful harp could be heard in his ears. The music was heavenly, relaxing as he heard it though it supplied him with a great amount of confusion. He didn't feel alarmed by the sudden sound of music, but his feet had stopped walking as he took a second to wonder what it was.

After a few seconds, a sweet angelic voice mixed in with the harp.

"_I slept all day."_

The image of Faith lying in the bed, wearing his shirt whilst the crisp light of the sun cast down on her smooth skin came into his mind. Her eyes were gently shut as she breathed deeply: a small, fragile smile on her face.

"_I woke with distaste."_

His feet slowly began to move as he edged his way over to the entrance to the family room. Everything was getting darker from the fading sunlight outside and he didn't think to switch on the lights, in fear of frightening someone. His hand gently brushed against the cold wall as he turned to the wooden frame. The music continued to play and he could just about see the old CD player in the shadows, which was emitting with the song. The family room was large, old fashioned and cosy. It was co-joined with the kitchen next door in an open plan and as his eyes gazed to the kitchen, they landed on the counter and widened.

"_That the difference, between the sprout and the bean."_

Folds of slightly see-through material gently draped from the counter. They twisted loosely against each other; the white material bright even in the dark shadows. The shirt was slipped gently on a small, fragile body that rested on the counter: slim, slightly marked, legs hung off it and thin, strong finger tips gripped the cold edge of the counter, to prevent the small child-like figure from falling off and help keep balance.

"_It is a golden ring …"_

'I love her' he immediately thought once hearing that lyric. He took a step foreword, into the dark room as he kept his eyes on the figure. Her hair was dark; a little bit of pink emitted from the top like a light, from the faint dusky lights from the window behind her.

"_It is a twisted string."_

He stared at her, completely stunned. Her eyes were dark, as they were pointed to the floor; her eyelashes covering her beautiful gems. She seemed completely oblivious to Gaignun as she kept her mind on the song that was playing soothingly in the background, doing a job to soothe her and keep her calm.

"And you can ask the counsellor," she muttered in tune with the song. He blinked, taking a few more steps foreword; drawn to her sweet voice. As his feet stepped on the tiled floor, to show he was now in the kitchen side of the room, her head suddenly jerked up; her eyes staring straight at him, drenched in panic. He could see her face clearly now; her beautiful, angelic features; her gold eyes with that strange hint of blue wrapped around the black pupil. Her mouth was alluringly parted slightly; her lips thin and rosy pink. The sight of her caused his heart to skip a beat, in the good way. The wave of guilt washed over him as he stared at her: forgetting everything that happened. How he wanted to run up to her, to embrace her and hold her close; smell her hair and touch her skin! But something held him back; either it was his usually serious, almost emotionless character or the strange expression she gave him like a child would give a father if caught doing something wrong.

Finally, after the long pause of no one speaking, she let her voice be heard over the sound of the song, which had faded quickly into the distance. "Gaignun …"

"Faith," he replied, his voice soft. He stepped foreword, holding his arms out to her. "Come on, let me help you down."

Faith stared at his outstretched arms for a moment, before taking them with her hands. He hadn't noticed when he had been watching her, but her hands were trembling furiously as they grabbed onto his toned arms. Taking a step foreword again, he wrapped his hands around her waist, supporting her as she almost jumped to the floor. When she was firmly on the ground, he had yet to let go of her waist; his hands stayed firm around her and hers stayed firmly around him. She was the one to make the move, and throw herself into him. Rested the side of her face on his chest; she moved her hands up his arms and wrapped them tightly around his neck. Holding her close, he smiled contently.

"I'm so sorry, Fay …" he whispered, frowning a little as the memory of Albedo harming his love came into his mind. "I am so sorry."

"Don't worry about it," she said so casually as if he had just broken something that belonged to her. "Stop feeling guilty. I'm alive, you're alive and that's it."

"But were things I could have done …" he whispered.

"Gaignun, stop it. You did everything you could," she said. "It was my turn to protect you."

There was a pause of silence; the song finally finished and another one came on. Smiling, Faith nuzzled Gaignun's neck, pushing herself closer to him. Happily he wrapped his arms tighter around Faith; her fingers intertwined with themselves as she held onto his neck gently.

"Sunshine, you are my sunshine, you make me happy when skies are grey," she sung gently as she shut her eyes.

"You make me happy when skies are grey, you'll never know dear how much I love you," in turn he shut his eyes, holding tighter onto Faith; his hands smoothing over her body. "So please don't take my sunshine away."

Her body began to feel limp in his arms, but he wasn't alarmed. Once he felt her hands letting go of themselves, and her arms beginning to fall from his neck he sighed deeply. Before her limp body had a chance to fall to the floor, he pulled her close, hushing her gently. "You should have slept like the doctors told you to …" he whispered to her gently, beginning to pick her light body up in a bridal way.

* * *

"He's gonna kill you for doing this!!"

"Do I look like I care?"

"Faith!"

The pink headed girl pulled her jeans up her pale legs the next morning and did the buttons up her shirt in a quick fashion. Hovering beside her, with white wings flapping slowly and gently, was a beautiful white dove: something Gaignun had given her. "Go back to being a pet," Faith whispered, tying her hair back with a butterfly clasp he had also given her. She smiled as she left the dark room; glancing back at the bed. He lay, his bare body wrapped up in the sheets as he slept soundly. The bird floating beside Faith looked at her, before landing back on the table, where it belonged.

"I won't be long," Faith whispered, waving a little at the dove. With a sly hand, she opened the draw to Gaignun's desk, quietly fishing around before the tips of her fingers touched something cold. Her lips grew into a wide smile as she recognized what she was touching and triumphantly, she grasped the thing, pulling it out of its resting place.

Her gold and blues eyes admired the beautiful piece of weaponry, before she slid it into her belt. The bird let out a small squeak, seeing what she had done and Faith shot her an evil glare. She put a thin finger to her lip, silencing the bird before leaving the room and shutting the door quietly behind her.

* * *

"_You're not leaving this house for awhile Fay …" Gaignun had told her earlier that night. "Not to meet any friends, not to do any shopping or anything of the sort."_

"_You're imprisoning me?" she gasped._

"_No! I'm not!" he said defensively. "I'm trying to help you. Please Fay, I don't want you getting injured."_

"_Gaignun, I'm okay."_

"_Just for me. Stay in here just for me …"_

"_But …" she had something she wanted to do – she needed to leave the house. She needed to get out to the outdoors and figure this all out. What she had seen in that dive was something she couldn't let go off, and what her brother had said to her in real life …_

… _Well that was defiantly something the murderous girl could not let go._

"_I'll stay inside. For you."_

Grabbing the house keys, she unlocked the door quietly, keeping all the lights off. That bird was right; Gaignun would be most displeased with her if he were to find out if she left. She just hoped that stupid dove would keep its damn mouth shut. Sure Gaignun had given it to her for company, but that mechanical bird was proving to be more trouble that it was worth. She hadn't even bothered to give it a name yet, because of the distaste she felt towards it; how it hovered about, desired attention constantly and nosed its way into her and Gaignun's private life. Hell, it had been nagging her for half an hour straight as she got ready before leaving the house in the night. Saying this and that, how she could get murdered by someone in the night, how someone could steal her wanting to have a 'realian' of their own or how she could just simply get run over, or fall into the lake and drown without another word to anyone; her body not being able to be found.

'_Damn morbid bird …'_ she thought to herself, tying her hair tighter. _'Little Miss Morbid should be her name.'_

The air was cold as Faith left the house; the ice cold morning air bit at her skin as she rolled her sleeves down, trying to cover it. She shivered furiously, looking up at the still night sky. It was getting to be Autumn; the nights were longer and though it was about five, it still looked like midnight. Oh well, she couldn't complain; at least it was better then it being bright out. She tried to think; think, think, think. Where would her brother be? Where would be the best place to look?

'_I had a home isolated from part of the town … Perhaps brother has one like it? People had a tendency to stay custom to things like that. Perhaps brother even still lives with mother.'_

She began to walk down the quiet street, folding her arms to her chest to contain her cold. A dark, menacing grin appeared on her face. _'I'd be able to kill them both off at once. How splendidly simple …'_

As if she hadn't thought of that, she continued to walk down the street, her footsteps quite slow as she walked Miltia. The best place, she figured, would be the town, where she had first met with her brother; where he had quite spectacularly stalked her for the day, frightening the hell out of the poor girl. It had taken her quite awhile until she had walked from Gaignun's home, to the main part of Miltia. It was strangely quiet, with few buildings lit up. The only ones that were light were shops, where the people would be getting the supplies ready, or were cleaning for the day ahead.

"_And what do you plan to do when you find him?" Little Miss Morbid had asked, flapping her wings wildly._

_Simply, Faith shrugged. "Not too sure."_

Suddenly, a shadow darted past her, in an almost lightening movement. Her heart pounded quickly; her body jumped as the figure ran past her, pausing for a split second. The pause the stranger had done made her heart pound faster for the simple reason; she knew the strangers eyes were set directly on her. They stared at each other, Faith unable to see their face and she was sure they were unable to see hers from the darkness. Her legs had stopped walking; her arms had moved to her sides in a few split seconds. And then, the figure had disappeared, leaving Faith to stand, stunned in the streets.

After a few moments, once her heart had calmed, she sighed, taking a step foreword.

There was a sharp, shooting pain crawling up her spine from behind her, making her cry out. Just as her voice left the back of her throat, a hand was pushed firmly against her mouth; silencing her. Something had dug into her back; someone had stuck something into her. She squirmed and wriggled like a feral cat as another strong arm was pulled around her; her heart began to pound fast again; her body felt like jelly but she kept it together. Her hand grabbed the wrist of the person holding his own hand to her mouth, trying to pull it away.

Her legs kicked and her hands tried to tear the person away. They were locked in a battle, the attacker just slightly stronger then the young woman. He pulled her back, taking a few steps into an alleyway to keep her out of view from any passers by. Her hair became loose from how she had tied it up, but she couldn't care. She parted her lips, his finger slipped into her mouth, which tasted of something so strong, so familiar.

It was the metallic taste of blood mixed with something else. Fuel perhaps? Whatever it was it tasted so disguisting she squirmed, but managed to bite down as hard as she could; her teeth tearing into the person's finger so that she could taste their blood too.

A voice cried from above her as she tore into him, and before she knew it, she had been pushed into the brick wall opposite her. Her arms came up, slamming into the wall with such force she cried out, feeling her elbows clicking. Her legs lost their balance from the sudden push; her body confused as the arm let go of her, freeing her. She had managed to stop her head from banging into the cold wall somehow, and as she fell to the ground, her wrists grazed the wall, giving her a stinging pain. Having landed on her knees, she tried to pull herself to her feet. Her body felt heavy as she tried to stand; in such panic it took a lot of effort to just simply move. A hand grasped her hair, causing her to cry out as she was pulled to her feet for her.

"Stupid girl!" a male voice hissed.

She whimpered as she was pulled back, not able to see her attackers face. But then, her eyes caught something that made them widen. The man she had bit was stood near the wall, holding his bleeding finger in his hand. She was unable to see his features clearly from the darkness, but she could see the outline of his thin body. He was tall, and it looked like he was wearing a business suite, which seemed odd considering he was an _attacker_. Shaking her head, she wouldn't let herself think of silly things like that; instead she focused on the second person who had arrived and was pulling her hard by her hair.

"Let me go!" she managed to shout, her voice weak. It seemed even simply talking was hard enough for her as her arms moved to the arm of the person behind her. She scratched at his skin on his arm, trying to get his hand off her hair.

"Stop it, you stupid girl!" the person yelled behind her: a male voice. He tugged at her hair again, causing her to cry out. His other, strong hand took hold of both her wrists, pulling her arms behind her back, painfully. Her shoulder's immediately began to ache from the vulnerable position she was in, and she whimpered. Her eyes looked at the man, who was casually cradling his torn finger in his good hand. She could feel his eyes on him as she settled; the man holding her also settled, knowing she wouldn't squirm around.

"Let me go," she whispered. "Let me go and I won't hurt you."

The one behind her laughed menacingly in her ear; the dark laugh caused a few tears to stream down her cheeks. "Now, now Miss Ackermann, you would never do that to us. Besides, your powers are too weak … too feeble."

She gasped, remembering the other day when she was in the alleyway. _"Not going to destroy me with your weak, feeble powers?" _She didn't know why, but as she stood there, she was unable to use her powers. As much as she thought, as much as she wished; she couldn't tear the skin of her attackers with her mind.

"This looks ugly in your hair," the person smirked. "Hey, get this out would you?"

He was obviously talking to the man who was still bleeding. The man came over to Faith, and all she was worried about was him getting his foul, strange blood in her hair, rather then the damage he could cause to her. She winced as he put his bloody hand in her hair, tearing out the butterfly clasp Gaignun had give it to her. She could see in the corner of her eye, the man showing it to the person holding her tightly. It was beautiful; the clasp made from white gold; emerald and amethyst jewels had been dotted around the butterfly, and yellow topaz had been used for the antenna. It was a piece of artwork; something so beautiful and magnificent and then it had been thrown to the floor and she felt another tear roll down her face. _'Gaignun.'_

"Better. Now I can see this natural hair of yours properly again."

* * *

He contently moaned, thinking before his body even awoke that she would be lying beside him; her hair smelling of fresh lilies and her rosy lips curled into the perfect smile that made his heart skip a beat. His hands moved foreword, searching the toast warm sheets for her body. But, after a few moments they found nothing. His finger kept intertwining with the sheets, rather then her and his eyes darted open. There was still no light from the dark outside, but the small, bedside lamp had been left on. Gaignun moved a little, blinking a few times as he stared foreword. The sheets were a mess, as if she had just gotten out and not made them. Frowning, he sat up properly, glancing around the room. That dove was sound asleep, perched on the edge of the desk; its feathers moving slightly. The entire room was quiet, eerily quiet and though he was assuring himself in his mind Faith was simply in the bathroom, something else was telling him otherwise.

"_You're just being overprotective," _he told himself as his hand ran through his silky black hair. His emerald eyes looked to the bathroom door and again he frowned. It was open slightly, leaving a small crack and what was even weirder was the fact the light was _off_. No yellow light seeped through the crack, indicating Faith was inside.

"Faith?" he called; his voice serious. He blinked a few times, getting rid of his fatigue as much as he could before pushing the sheets off his body. Swinging his legs off the bed, he noticed something on the floor.

Her nightwear. Her yellow spaghetti strap shirt, with a picture of a cute dinosaur was on the floor messily, next to it her yellow, soft trousers. A hand came to his forehead as he stood to his feet, knowing exactly what had happened.

"_I can't believe she went out …"_ he thought to himself as he quickly went over to the wardrobe, pulling out his fresh cloths. There wasn't a trace of emotion on his face, though his hear was beating just a little bit faster. After seeing her survive the previous day, he was sure she could go through anything without being hurt but he didn't want her to have to – he wouldn't let her have the chance of being through that gain. He wasn't worried for her; he was just concerned for once. He slid the black trousers over his legs, before taking out a vest shirt, and then putting a white dress shirt on it. He noticed how her red dress shirt had gone, along with a pair of her blue jeans. Yes, she had most defiantly gone out and he couldn't help but sigh.

He brushed his black locks, before quickly using the bathroom. The door was awake, watching him rush around. He wasn't sure why the bird was being so quiet for once; either it was too sleepy to say anything or it was horribly enjoying watching Gaignun as he got ready at a fast pace. After getting ready, he turned to the beautiful white dove. Groaning, he forced his mind to speak, still a little weirded out he was able to speak to a dove (though he knew full well it was a mechanical one, rather then a real one).

"Have you seen her?" he asked as politely as he could.

"Her? Ya referring to ya lil ol' girlfriend?" it asked, happily getting involved. It flapped its wings excitedly as Gaignun nodded. "Don't got a clue. She seemed uber excited though! What with running around and gettin' changed so fast."

"Do you know where she went?" Gaignun asked, getting a little impatient.

"Ya should know that, Master Gaignun," the dove said. "Ya should know where ya girl is, don't ya think?"

Gaignun groaned. "Never mind then …"

He stepped out of the bedroom, and into the hall. If the bird wasn't willing to tell him where she had gone, perhaps that meant she would be fine but still, he needed to know where she was. Pulling his phone off the nearby table, he began to search for her number, walking quickly down the stairs as he did so. Once he found it, he rang her, pulling the phone to his ear.

The ringing entered his ear as he opened the door, whispering to himself. "Pick up, pick up, pick up …" He had left his black jacket and tie in the house as he moved outside, heading towards the car.

* * *

'_Hello, hello, is anyone home? Hello, hello, just pick up the phone …'_ the song "Hello" by Paramore played in the dark alleyway as the two men stared silently at Faith; her hair still being painfully pulled. Her phone was going off in her jean pocket, and she could feel it vibrating softly against her leg. She tried to take her hand, to get to it, but the bleeding man had already gotten to it before her; pulling her blue, slightly scratched, phone rudely out of her pocket.

"It's the husband," he gruffly said. Faith squirmed.

"He's not my husband," she hissed, glaring at the man who had her phone. "You give that back to me right now!"

He smirked, pushing a button. She had thought he had hung up, when he held the phone to his ear, smiling widely as he did. He pushed another button, putting the phone on louder speaker for them all to hear.

"Faith where are you?" Gaignun's voice asked from the phone.

"Gaignun! Gaignun!" she cried, trying to move. Before she had a chance to say anymore, the man behind her had let go of her hair; putting his hand to her mouth. She squirmed like an animal, making muffled noises as she tried to speak. Eventually, she gave up; breathing deeply through her nose.

"Faith?!" the phone said. She cried again, trying to speak but her voice impossible to hear.

"Is this Gaignun Kukai?" the man who didn't hold Faith asked.

"Yes," he calmly answered. "And who may I have the pleasure of speaking to?" he tried to stay calm, though he was worried about her well being.

"Let's save the formalities for later, shall we?" he asked.

"Yes, let's. For now we may speak about Faith," Gaignun said. She could hear the car whenever there was silence. He was trying to find her? God, she felt terrible.

"Beautiful girl," the man said. He looked down at his red finger. "Got some pretty sharp teeth on her too."

Gaignun didn't reply. Faith stared at the phone, hearing the ticking of the indicator in the background. The arm of the man that held her had moved to wrap around her waist, holding her arms back too. She took this as her chance, quickly tearing her arm away. The man behind her panicked as she took her arm back, quickly reaching for the gun in her belt. She grabbed the weapon; the hand of the man had slid off her mouth as he tried to restrain her.

"Get off me!" she screamed, trying to twist the gun to point to the man behind her.

"Don't be such a silly girl," the man hissed. The other man came on alert, seeing the bawl but the other man had nodded, telling him he could handle it. She cried as he pulled her other arm back, twisting her body around so that he could stop her from pointing the gun to her. She kicked behind her, hitting his legs a few times. Her breathing had increased as they came into a fight, him trying his best to make sure the barrel wouldn't point at his body, and her trying to make sure it would.

Whilst she fought, she spoke, talking to Gaignun. "In the town, near the bakery." She groaned as he pulled her wrist back with her fingers. Then a scream left her lips as she heard the cracking of her finger; the pain shooting up to her elbow as he broke her bone.

* * *

There was a long beep as the phone was hung up; Gaignun's eyes were wide and he slammed his fists down on the steering wheel. "Damnit!" he yelled, Jr's traits rubbing off on him. He pushed his foot down, driving smoothly and quickly towards the direction Faith had pointed him in.

* * *

Her body was slammed onto the floor, her arms being pulled behind her back as she lay, flat on her stomach on the ice cold floor. Her forehead leaned on the cold floor; it took too much of her energy to lift her head up, what with her arms being pulled behind her back. She felt the body of one of the men come on top of her; preventing her from moving. She felt a few tears run down her face as she had been beaten; the gun taken from her hands. In the vulnerable position, with nothing she could do but lye and take what would be coming was horrible to her. She had done such a thing with Albedo the previous day, but that had been for reasoning. She was giving something away, rather then now; her strength was being taken from her and for what reason she did not know why. All she knew was the strong plague of regret she had in her heart. Why hadn't she listened to Gaignun? Why couldn't she be the good partner and do what was asked of her? She sighed deeply, her body shivering from the cold.

The footsteps of a man loomed close behind her, giving her a feeling of dread. "Right, now that you are calm," he said. She could hear the clip of the gun as she lifted her head. Four or five silver bullets dropped from the weapon, making a tinging noise as they hit the concrete floor, by her. "We can wait peacefully, okay?"

"Wait…?" she breathlessly repeated. "For whom?"

"Why our ride of course …"

And the image of Gaignun in his car came to her mind.


	20. Other Hand Of God

**|| Chapter Twenty ||  
Other Hand of God**

Blood trickled down her lip; the life substance dripped to the floor in a few droplets. Faith had been pulled back up to her feet, only to be slammed back down to the floor again in a rage from the man behind her, who she yet had to see. As she lay, whimpering and choking on her blood, she looked down at the liquid; her body shivered from the cold. Her heart began to pound as she watched the gooey liquid form an almost tear drop on the dark, hard floor. Her mind twisted with itself as she choked again, coughing more of her horrible tasting blood onto the floor. Her throat burned as she continued to cough. Although it felt like it, she wasn't coughing out much blood for one to be alarmed.

"_Believe me sir, I didn't mean to!" She remembered the white headed man grabbing her by the throat at that point, holding his strong hand so tightly around her she was prevented of breathing; of talking; being put on the brink of death._

These two men made her mind become clouded with the dismal thoughts of Albedo, with the way they had suddenly snapped, punishing her for just speaking a word. All she had done was ask for them to leave Gaignun out of whatever they had planned, and for no reason whatsoever the one had lifted her up, and for a naive second she thought she would be freed, only to slam her back down onto the floor. She felt weak as she breathed painfully, the man holding his position on her again. Hopelessly, she stared at the bullets that were lining the floor; the weapon in the other persons hand. She didn't know where he was, but as she had been lifted up she caught a glimpse of him in her eye; he had been leaning casually against the wall, as if he was waiting for someone. But he was, wasn't he really? He was waiting for the ride – waiting for Gaignun. But Faith was sure Gaignun wouldn't give the attackers a ride, especially as they had no weapon to threaten him with. As a matter of fact, as she just realized, they had nothing to threaten Gaignun with.

So in a few moments she would be free. She imagined herself being free of the too men; her cold body running into Gaignun's warm one. He would hold her close, sharing his heat and tell her it was all okay. Then, after enough convincing she would manage to get him to help her to find her brother. She would sit in the car, staring dreamily out the window as she spoke to Gaignun about whatever her mind would have to offer; asking for him to turn up the heat because of how much time she had spent outside, explaining the cold had gripped a tight hold on her body. She didn't have a clue what would happen when they found her brother, but she'd be in his safety, which was good enough.

"What are you thinking of, Faith?" the man against the wall asked her. He sounded bored and it was obvious he was asking her so she could release him from his boredom. Though she didn't wish to, she answered none the less.

"Something that has nothing to do with you," she bit her lip, expecting a beating straight away but the man only laughed.

"Haha, oh you're still quite the rude one, Faith," he menacingly commented; his voice and mannerisms reminding her much of Albedo. "Thinking about your husband are we?"

She gritted her teeth. "He's _not_ my husband," she glared down at the floor, not being able to collect the energy to look at the person. A cold wind swept into the alleyway, sending shivers to run down Faith's spine, though she had tried her best to hold them back. And to think – right now she could be snuggled up in her warm bed, with the stupid twittering of Little Miss Morbid beside her, who, surprisingly, Faith had begun to miss.

"You want him to be, don't you?" the man's cold voice sniggered. "Silly girl, caught up in your fantasies. May I ask why hasn't he popped the question and given you the ring to bound you two for eternity?"

She sighed deeply, not knowing the answer to it herself. She figured the man was just trying to get inside of her and reveal her weakness. Faith shook her head, she'd be damned if she let that happen! "One doesn't need a ring to prove one's eternal love to another," her voice was mature and almost emotionless as she spoke.

"Is that so?" he asked, maintaining the same tone she had spoken with. "Or …" his voice began to grow cold as she heard his footsteps; his body drawing close to hers. "Does he not truly love you? Why is that, _Faith?_ Is it because of the simple fact you're a realian?"

His fingers suddenly came under her chin; his strong tips dug until her flesh as he tore her head up, to look at him. She moaned as he lifted her head up painfully; an aching pain began at the back of her neck as he kept her in that position. Still, his features were covered by the darkness – preventing her from seeing him, but she could feel his cold eyes staring deep into hers and she could just about see the dark shadow cast over his lips, grinning menacingly.

"_Or is it because you're a blood thirsty murderer?_" he hissed deeply. He hadn't spoken loudly; his voice was almost soft but because of the words mixed with the menacing tone, she couldn't help but let her body shiver; her eyes shook as the goose bumps appeared on her skin.

She heard the pulling up of a car and the man in front of her quickly darted, leaving her to lye there; the other man firmly on her to prevent her from escaping. Though she knew there would be no chance of an escape, she still squirmed around, part of her just wanting to cause hassle for the man holding her down, whilst the other part believing deeply there would be a chance for her to escape. She simply heard the opening of the car door and then a few words were spoken to the man, yet she hadn't heard properly. Suddenly, she was pulled up to her feet: her wrists being held together by his strong hand; the other grapping onto her hair which she was sure would fall out anytime soon by the strength they used.

In her eye she could see the black car: the exact model of Gaignun's vehicle and her heart began to furiously pound against her chest. Her breathing increased as she felt strangely light headed. Her world became a strange blur as she tried to blink; keeping it all clear but it was useless. Before she knew it the world had slowly faded into darkness before she had managed to get to the car Gaignun was in. She could feel the arms of the person become loose around her wrists, and she wanted to run away, but because of her fading mind all she could do was to stand; feeling her body grow limp without her being able to do a thing.

* * *

"_What would you do if you were to get caught?" the eager young boy asked, though there was a hint of worry in his tone. All the girl could do was giggle. Standing above her was a beautiful woman, with red coloured hair. Her hands were wrapped in a pair of clear, plastic gloves, as she began to blend a foul smelling liquid into the girl's pink and red locks. As her fingers massaged her daughters head, she giggled and squirmed; sometimes hissing in discomfort if her mother pulled at her wet hair a little too hard._

_Their mother sighed deeply as she dug deeper into her roots. "That's why we are dying her hair, so that she cannot get caught."_

"_Whoa what's smell?" a loud, deep male voice asked; the owner of the voice came into the dinning room, taking off his blazer before giving his wife a kiss on the cheek._

_The little girl giggled as her father hugged her brother, and then gave her a playful look. "Faith, that you? What did you do to my daughter? I think we should let her have a bath."_

"_I'm dying her hair," the mother smirked at her husband's playfulness._

"_Boy I can't wait to see that," he smiled, poking Faith's little nose. "I bet I won't even recognise you. What colour are you going for, Faith? Shocking blue? What about bright red?"_

"_Electric yellow!" she happily cried, almost jumping off her seat. Her father grinned happily, whilst her mother angrily sighed as some of the smelling dye went onto her cheek._

"_Faith, do stay still!" she glared. "I'm getting more of this on me then in your hair."_

"_Sorry mummy …" she bit her lip gently, trying not to laugh as it would only irritate her mother even more. She put her head down, wrapping the towel tighter around her neck._

"_Is this for the disguise?" her father whispered, thinking Faith's ears hadn't caught his voice. Though they had, she stayed silent, wishing to find out more and to not make herself out to be rude. Her eyes looked to the side, spotting her brother who was sitting on the chair to the side, watching her intently._

"_Yes," her mother whispered back. "We'll have to keep on top of it though. Her roots are going to come through __**pink**__ and __**red**__. Don't forget that."_

"_I won't, I couldn't," he whispered. "It's just … we're being naïve, thinking this will work."_

_Her mothers hands quickly came away from her hair; Faith just sat there, her eyes looking to her brother who was watching there parents with a look of worry on his face. Their mother quickly turned around to their father; a face of anger on her face as she walked to him, backing him into the wall. She was a tall woman, with strong arms; a good body build that anyone would be afraid of, though it wasn't fear that made the man back into the wall – it was the pure shock of seeing the usually calm woman getting angry._

"_We are not being naive, you hear me?" she yelled; the dye dripping off her gloved fingers and onto the floor. "We have worked damn hard to get that, that … that girl to where she is now! And I will not have anything get in the way! We've worked too hard, and a simple hair dye won't get rid of it all, I agree, but it's a simple idea – not naïve at all, okay?"_

_

* * *

_

Faith stirred as she woke up, her mind blurred as she groggily came around. The sound of a car was the first thing she heard; the sickening feeling in the stomach the first thing she felt. Her body bounced as the car drove along a bumpy road. As she blinked a few times, she found her head leaning on the cold window glass; her hair had fallen over her face, though she could still tell it hadn't been long since she had fallen into unconsciousness; the sky was still dark. As she moved her hand to brush the hair from her eyes, she noticed how her index finger was covered in a white bandage, where it had been broken by the man. _'Gaignun …'_ she thought as she tucked her hair behind her ears, and sat up properly. The soft seats of the car felt good under her body as she glanced around; the car filled. Beside her was one of the men, the one she had bitten; she was sure of it. He was cradling a red finger in his hand again. She could see his face properly this time. He could be counted as a handsome man, defiantly normal looking too which was … remarkable to her. How could a man so normal, sitting with sandy blonde hair and wearing an average suit be her attacker? It was something she wished not to dwell on at that moment in time – all she could care about was getting the answers and figuring out what was going on.

Sat in front of her was the other attacker, and driving the car next to him was someone else. His hair was pure black and he was wearing a black coat, along with black trousers. Her heart began to pound quickly against her ribcage as she stared at the man; her eyes widened in either shock or happiness; perhaps a strange mix – she couldn't tell. Her mouth opened as she left out an airy gasp. "Gaignun."

"I thought she was meant to be sleeping," the man in front of her hissed, obviously annoyed. "I thought you had injected her some Local Anaesthetic?"

"I thought I had too," the man beside her said; his voice a little worried. "I did it before anything even happened. Trust me, I did."

"Then how come she is still awake?" the other yelled; his voice so loud, so shocking it caused Faith to jump. "Obviously it didn't work, did it?!"

"You … have some temper issues," Faith whispered, feeling safer with Gaignun in the car, though he wasn't speaking much. Just having him around made her feel better then anything, though she was extremely confused at the same time. What was he doing driving the car? Were the other two men being taken somewhere? Yes, that would defiantly make sense. They were the ones that would be getting into trouble, probably with the police and Gaignun was being silent because of many reasons: mostly because it was his character and for the simple fact he could be so worried and so angry at the same time it kept his mouth quiet.

"Keep your trap shut, you little brat!" the man in front yelled, proving what Faith had said: he did have anger issues.

Gaignun must have whispered something to the man, because after he sighed deeply; an almost groan and sat back on his chair, folding his arms tightly. She felt the eyes of the other man on her neck as she stared out of the window; drifting into her own, sleepy world. Just as she felt her eyes beginning to droop shut, as if they weighed ten stone, she heard a song quickly emerge from the pocket of her jeans, making her body convulse as she jumped in fear and shock.

'_Hello, hello, is anyone home? Hello, hello, just pick up the phone.'_ Before anyone else had the chance to attempt to stop her, she had quickly gotten her hand into her pocket, grabbing the phone. She couldn't remember being given back the phone, but someone must have done seeing as though Gaignun was in the car with her, and really she couldn't get any help, even if they needed it. She pushed a button with her finger, and held the phone to her ear; the men in the car, apart from the driver, had their eyes turned around to her; watching her carefully, a little shocked too that her phone had randomly gone off.

"Hello?" she asked, sniffing a little as she watched the others carefully.

"Faith, where are you?" a voice on the other end of the phone asked. She felt all the blood drain from her head as she sat there; her hand clutching her phone tightly.

"W-who … i-is this?" she asked, her voice shaking as she looked at the black headed driver.

"Faith, its Gaignun."

Her throat closed up as she stared at the driver, who she had been sure was Gaignun. Her body began to tingle, a strange emotion coming over her as she stopped herself from feeling light headed. A small dizzy spell came over her, yet she had managed to stop herself from dropping the phone and letting her body fall limp. Being strong, her fingers wrapped around the phone a little tighter then before, her palms beginning to furiously sweat and her breathing increased.

"G-Gaignun?" she repeated, trying to understand it. "They wanted me to have the phone … they want me …"

She heard the sniggering of the man in front of her and she furiously glared. "You're sick!"

"Stop acting like such a foul child," the driver hissed. She was unsure of whether he was speaking to him or to her, but his face turned to the man for a split second; flashing him a frightening and stern glare. "If I had expected you to treat Miss Ackermann with such appalling manners I would have collected her myself."

"What? You'd have knocked on her door and requested her?" the man smirked. "The girl wouldn't have gone with her even if you begged her. We had to attack her for reasons."

"Perhaps," he said. "But there was no need for such emotional tumour, you understand this, yes? I call such a thing cruelty. Faith, Miss Ackermann, may you please place your phone into that socket?"

Faith blinked, staring at him for a few moments. His hand came behind the seat and his finger tapped a holder, in the shape of her phone. "You do not need to hang up on Mister Kukai." He explained as he took his arm back and put his hand on the steering wheel where it belonged. She obliged and slipped her phone into the holder, and within a beep it was put on loudspeaker, for all to hear.

"Gaignun Kukai?" the driver asked politely; not a tone in his voice to be fearful of.

"Yes, this is he. Where is Faith?" he asked; his voice with a little bit of anger.

"I assure you Miss Ackermann is fine," the driver said. "My name is Damion Blanc. May I just say that Faith is fine, I can promise you that? She has a few minor damages due to some unfortunate mistakes of my colleagues, but other then that she is just as healthy as she was when you last saw her. I do apologize for these circumstances. I had wished to collect you and Faith, it would have been easier for the girl, but because of her stubbornness to go outside during dark hours, I took our chance while we had it. I do apologize for any hassle I've caused for you."

"Can you explain why you want Faith?" Gaignun asked.

"We only want to talk to her about her past, Mister Kukai," Damion answered. "But I wish for you to be there too. Could you meet us at the old farming house on the outskirts of town? It's just field right now, but you can spot the house a mile off – its large and on its own."

"Yes, I will meet you," Gaignun answered. The sound of a car door shutting could be heard, and then Faith could hear the turning off the keys as he switched on his vehicle. "But on the grounds you let me stay speaking to Faith."

"Gaignun, I'm right here," Faith smiled, happy with his caring. She could have sworn she heard him sigh out in relief.

"We're … going to have to do something about you and running off …" he chuckled, trying to be playful with her. She smiled.

"I know, I'm so sorry, Gaignun," she said. "You're on loudspeaker right now, so you know."

"I see, so who else is in the car?" he asked. The two other men, who had yet to say their names, glanced at each other. The one she had bitten sighed, knowing he was to go first.

"There would be me," the man said. "I believe we have spoken before, a few minutes ago on the phone. The name is Luis Clementine."

'_Clementine …' _her eyes widened. "Daddy …" she whispered so quietly if anyone had heard her they didn't say or do anything in reaction.

"Oh would you look at that," the man who hadn't named himself yet happily said. "We're home. Oh how fantastic. Look at that, Faith. Mother will be most pleased."

She gasped as a name came to her head. "G-Gabriel?!"

The man sniggered and soon was laughing hysterically; his hand on his face to collect the salty tears that were emitting from his eyes from the amount of laughing he was doing. Faith put on a firm glare, feeling anger towards him.

"I always _hated_ your name," she hissed. "Gabriel is an angel, the other hand of God. You don't deserve such a name."

"You do not deserve such a name like Faith," he smirked. "No one could ever put faith into you, what with the way you constantly changed from one person to another."

"No one could ever name you after God's other hand," she countered.

"Oh do you not see it?" Gabriel smiled. "I am the other hand – Mother is God and I am her messenger, her helper."

"Mother is God in the eyes of a child …" she whispered, quoting a line she had grown to know.

"Stop with this nonsense," Damion said, breaking the short silence.

"Faith …" Gaignun said. "Please, pick up the phone. I wish to speak with you in private."

Hesitating, she glanced from Damion, to Luis and then to Gabriel, her eyes going back to Damion one more time. They all seemed occupied within their own minds, Damion driving of course down a dirty road in the middle of no where; none of them objecting to what Gaignun had said. Nervously, she reached for her phone, taking it out the holder and then held it hard to her ear. "Gaignun, only I can hear you now."

"Good," he smiled widely on the other end. "What's the difference between the sprout and the bean?"

Faith giggled. "Heh, what are you talking about, Gaignun?" she asked, feeling a jolt of happiness from his unusual behaviour.

"That the difference between the sprout and the bean," he said, almost in a tuneful way; quoting a line from 'Sprout and Bean' she and him had been listening to the previous day. "What is the difference?"

"It is a golden ring," she sung, more in tone then him. "It is a twisted string."

"Good girl," he grinned. "You sung and answered the question. I want you to think about that until I come, okay? I shouldn't be too long. Ten minutes at most, perhaps, but I don't want you to worry. Now, what's the difference between the sprout and the bean?"

She giggled. "It is a golden ring."

* * *

"Here, Miss," Damion offered, getting out of the car. Faith undid her seat belt as the other men exited at a much faster pace then she had. Being busy singing with Gaignun, she had only hung up when Damion had switched off the car; when everyone else had already taken off their seatbelts with their eager hands clutching the handle. The belt made an almost excited noise as it retracted to its resting place; Faith slid her phone into her pocket and put her hand on the door handle, ready to get out when Damion stood on the other side, opening the door before she had the chance. The door handle was torn from her hand and her arm almost dropped. Her skin immediately shivered as the cold air came into the once warm car; but she ignored it, staring at Damion's politeness as he held the door open for her, waiting for her to get out.

"T-thank you …" she stuttered, getting out of the car. Her legs felt a little numb as she clambered out, the anaesthetic that had been injected into her made her entire body feel unusually numb, as if she were dead.

"It's quite alright," he smiled. The sky was still dark, yet a little lighter then it had been before; a slight blue tint had been added to the dark colour, lightening it up, and signalling the sign of a new day to start. The air was still cold, her breathe could be seen under her nose as she breathed or spoke. She was able to see his face in the little bit of light; his smooth features, clear skin and freshly shaven face and his dark blue eyes; they were all familiar to her. With a strong arm, he shut the door and looked at her as she moved awkwardly on the pebble covered path. "Are you alright, Miss Ackerman? Do you need any assistance?"

"I'm fine," she said, glancing at her surroundings. There were miles of fields, sectioned off into little squares with old wooden fences, where cattle and other things had been grown. At the end of the driveway was a large home. It had three stories, made from old fashioned wood and a beautiful porch that reminded her much of her old home. Gabriel and Luis had begun to make their way to the house, whilst Damion stayed back.

"Miss Ackermann, it is time to come inside," he said; his voice dragging her eyes to look at him.

"Please, don't call me Miss Ackermann," she said. She turned her head to the road, wondering when Gaignun's car would be pulling up. She didn't want to enter the house without him; she felt so nervous and though this kind, polite man called Damion was there with her, it didn't mean she felt safe. Hell, she felt the complete opposite! From the small pockets of memories she had, she was sure her family would kill her off if they ever got the chance.

Damion sighed deeply, his hand moving into his coat pocket. "I'm sorry, Faith." He said; his fingers moved and his other hand slipped into the same pocket. She watched him with curiosity as he did something in his pocket. "I've just been so used to addressing you as Miss Ackermann it's become accustomed to me," she frowned at his words. Slowly, but suddenly to Faith, he pulled out the silver gun she had stolen from Gaignun. He had finished putting the bullets back inside the weapon and was clipping it all back together. Instantly her feet took a step backwards as he cared for the weapon, her palms beginning to sweat.

Perfect place; it was a perfect place to kill her. She could picture it all, being told to get down on her knees, to stare at the pebbles, taking in all their unique patterns and colours, awaiting her death. Then there would be the defining bang as the trigger would be pulled; raven birds with feathers the same colour as Gaignun's locks would fly into the air as her body would fall limp. It was far from the town, no one would hear her and Gaignun would soon find her. It would be surprising if Damion's name was in fact Damion.

He clipped the gun, before looking up at her horrified expression. He smiled a little from her reaction as he turned the gun around, the barrel facing him. With one hand up in the air he passed the gun over to her so that she could grab the handle and the barrel wasn't facing her. "It's to make you feel safer; I hadn't planned to shoot you."

"I bet Gabriel wishes to shoot me," she muttered to herself as she took the weapon, a little shocked he had been willing to give it to her. Making sure the safety was on; she put the gun in her belt.

"Gabriel acts like an irrational child most of the time," Damion said. "But if he were to ever have such a thought, it isn't true."

Faith sighed, not believing him and looked back at the road, desperately searching for Gaignun's car with her eyes. Damion had seen her and sighed like she had done.

"He'll be here soon," he said. "Come on, let's go inside otherwise you'll catch a cold."

"I want to wait," she said, taking a step foreword.

"Faith …" he was about to say more when she sharply cut him off, speaking in a loud, firm tone.

"I _want_ to _wait_!" she growled, stepping foreword again. Stubbornly, she sat down on the uncomfortable cold pebbles, disturbing them as she made a place to sit. She pulled down the sleeves of her shirt so that they covered her fingers, and crossed her legs. Her elbows leaned on her knees and her hands held her head as she stared foreword, waiting patiently for him.

"Damion!" Gabriel impatiently called. "What's taking so long?"

"We are waiting for Mister Kukai," he answered, giving an expression to Gabriel. Even far away, Faith could hear an irritated grunt come from Gabriel.

"He wasn't so impatient when we were kids," Faith muttered, shivering furiously from the cold.

"Which is why we should go inside," Damion said. "We don't want him to get irritated, besides, your cold Faith."

"I'm fine," she hissed quietly.

She could hear the sound of an engine drawing closer; her eyes strained as she looked at the road, just about able to see Gaignun's black car driving quickly. Her heart began to pound quickly in excitement as a smile appeared on her face. _'That the difference between the sprout and the bean, it is a golden ring.'_

He turned the car to the left, driving on the pebble pathway. Damion had stood back a little as Gaignun parked, Faith jumping to her feet as she excitedly watched Gaignun, eager to run up to him and greet him, though the guilt was still looming over her. She had put the poor man through a lot of the previous days, and she was struggling to figure out how to make it up to him. Before she had a chance to even begin to think of things like that he had switched off the car and she found herself twiddling her fingers in anticipation. The door opened and he stood out gracefully. Seeing his strong figure, his face and his beautiful black hair was enough for her heart to skip a beat and a feeling of safety run through it.

Before the alluring man could glance up, or shut the door of the car, her body ran into his, almost knocking him into the vehicle. He was so warm against her body, just like she had imagined before. He smiled contently as she wrapped her arms around his body, tucking her face into his sweet smelling shirt. In reaction he put a hand on her back, holding her close to him. He was relieved, more then relieved to have her back in his arms, safe again.

"Gaignun I-" she was cut off by him.

"Apologize and give you the task of doing my paper work," he smirked. Her head lifted to look at his face and he poked her nose, making her giggle.

"I did do your paper work," she smirked, reaching up to poke his nose. "Remember those sheets from yesterday?"

"That was you?!" he gasped, remembering how annoyed he had been; how he had thrown them irrespectively across the room, when they had been Faith's work. She had used her time; when she had been ill from the amount of blood loss, when she was meant to be resting, to finish his work for him. His face softened as he stared at her, his lips slowly curling into a smile. "Faith …" he whispered, pulling her close to him again. "However did I get such a wonderful girl like you?"

She smirked, holding tighter onto him like a child. "Not that wonderful …" she whispered so quietly Gaignun couldn't hear.

Keeping his arms wrapped around her, his eyes glanced over to Damion, who stood near the car. Damion returned his look with a polite nod and a slight smile. "Damion Blanc?" he asked.

"Yes Sir," he nodded again. "It's a pleasure to be in your company. We do thank you for being here with us."

"I'm here for Faith, not for you," Gaignun almost glared as he looked at the house; Gabriel stubbornly leaned on the wall with his arms crossed, glaring at either Gaignun or Faith (most likely Faith) and Luis was messing around his torn finger again. "Now …"

Gaignun looked at the car door, and then back to Damion. "Is this meeting worth putting my partner under strain, or must I take her home now?"

"No, Gaignun," Faith said, lifting her head to look at him. As she spoke to him, his fingers ran through her tangled hair, brushing it for her. Her locks felt soft under his hair and soothing to his skin. "I need to face this, I have to face this," her fists tightened around his shirt as she looked down at his chest. "I want … I want a life with you, I want to maybe be called Faith Kukai, and I … we can't do that unless everything's straightened out."

There was a little pause of silence as she remembered Gabriel's words; _"Does he not truly love you? Why is that, Faith? Is it because of the simple fact you're a realian? Or is it because you're a blood thirsty murderer?_"

These words caused her to shiver furiously and Gaignun, taking it the wrong way, sighed deeply, taking his arms from her. She felt cold as he pulled away and stared at him, wondering what he was doing. He went inside of the car, reaching to the back and pulled out a blue blanket. He shut the door behind him, wrapping the blanket around her shoulders, facing her.

"You should have gone inside …" he whispered, his face close to hers as he continued to hold the blanket tight to her body.

"I wanted to wait," she countered, feeling warmer as the material was wrapped around her. "I feel safer with you."

His hand moved onto her cold face, caressing her cheek gently and lovingly. He kissed her forehead just as lovingly, and then kissed her cheek; both making her smile. "Faith Kukai sounds like a beautiful name …"

She smiled, blushing furiously as she nuzzled herself closer to him. Never had she felt so loved, so happy then she did at that moment. The world around them disappeared as she was held by him; his face deep in her hair. He kissed her sweet smelling hair and smiled. After a few long minutes, Gabriel's yelling could be heard in everyone's ears.

"Would you two lovers hurry the hell up?!" he yelled, obviously irritated. "I hadn't brought you here to kiss and waste my time."

"Is he your brother?" Gaignun asked her quietly, not wanting to let go.

"Yeah … come on, Gaignun," she said, lifting her head. She moved away from him only for him to hook his arm around hers; his hand gripped tightly on her own as he smiled. She smiled back and looked over to the house, the usual feeling of nerves appearing in her chest, yet not as strong with the man of her dreams holding onto her.

**Comments~ **Wow a long chapter =) Hope you enjoy. Sorry I haven't replied to the reviews people have given for the last couple of chapters; poor internet access, so I'll just say now thank you all so much for you kind words; I appreciate it so so sooo much and they all make me smile. =] So thankies very much, again.


	21. Unlocking The Past

**Comments – **Okay, this chapter involves quite a few flashbacks, so I apologize if anyone gets confused by it and I apologize for the crummyness of the chapter. Yush, yush, I knows – I'm really unconfident but meh. I hope ya'll like the little added "albedoness" and "chaosness" in these chapters. Anyhoo, thanks for the last few reviews guys! They mean a lot to me =) Hope you enjoy.

**|| Chapter [Twenty-One] ||**

**Unlocking The Past**

"_Dad, dad look!" the twelve year old Faith happily cried, jumping up and down before she even got to the red car belonging to her father. Her blonde hair sparkled in the bright sun light; reflecting off the heated rays as she bounced up and down, her lips curled into that oh-so rare smile. His smile was small, almost fake looking but from his bright eyes it was obvious he was happy his child was in such good spririts._

"_What have you got there, sweetheart?" he asked as she approached the car, a few school children darted past but paused for a few moments to wave a goodbye to Faith. She waved back and he sighed deeply in almost joy as he watched her daughter._

_They had been 'normal' for about two months now. Faith had yet to harm another human being; her hair was a natural, beautiful, shade like all other children. She looked like the other children with her short black skirt, white blouse and purple school tie. And best of all, like a child would do, she bounced home from school, proud of a piece of work she had done in the day. Each day was getting easier and easier for the child, who had been struggling to adjust to the strange "normal" lifestyle. Days rarely went by without her smiling or laughing and the father couldn't be more pleased. His daughter was normal; she was a beautiful girl that would go through a normal life._

"_Dad I got an A!" she said, getting into the car. She threw her back on the seats behind. The light bag hit something else, and a cry came from the thing it hit._

"_Ah, Miss Ackermann!" the male voice muttered as they moved the bag. Faith gasped widely, struggling not to laugh, though her father was showing a rude smirk._

"_Mister Blanc I'm so sorry!" she apologized. "I didn't mean to. I didn't even know you were in the car."_

"_It's quite alright, ma'am," he sighed, putting a notebook back into the bag that had fallen out during its "flying lessons"._

"_Anyhow, dad they gave me an A for this!" she held up a piece of paper so close to her fathers eyes he had to push it back a little for him to see. Painted on the picture in an abstract manner was a gorgeous pair of butterflies; flying together in the wind. The ends of their wings were like ribbons, intertwining with themselves. He stared at the beautiful picture, taken back at how meaningful it was, though a simple twelve year old had drawn it. It was so … different to what had been drawn before by Faith's hands._

_He could remember images of hanging people, blood pouring from theirs eyes. She had always, always, said to him about why blood came from their eyes. He remembered the line she used to constantly explain the reason as to why as if it were burned into his skull._

'_It's not nice to see who their murderer is. Besides, it's much easier to fight them off when they cannot see. Do you understand, dad?'_

_She didn't use this little explanation with her mother; never ever. She simply shrugged it off saying "I don't know. Red eyes are pretty," and never did he explain to his wife what Faith had said to him. Perhaps it was because he didn't want to worry his wife, or perhaps it was the simple fact he knew Faith didn't wish for her to know and he followed his wishes. As he thought about it, sitting in the car, he realized it was most likely the second reason._

"_That's brilliant Faith … absolutely superb …" he smiled at his eager daughter who was distracted. She was staring out the car; her ice blue eyes set on a figure stood by the gates. Her body was frozen as she curiously watched the white headed man, who was at most seven years older then herself. He was masculine; strong looking at he leaned his arm on the brick wall. He scanned the car park of the school, looking for someone intently. A gentle breeze brushed his snow white locks out of his cold, unusual purple eyes. And then, as if he could sense Faith's staring, they darted to her._

"_Dad … give me one moment …" she whispered, as if mesmerized by the person stood by the gate. The car door was already open as she said that, and she was sliding out of the red car slowly, as if the man watching her back was a skittish animal._

"_Faith, where are you going?" her father asked, a little shocked as he handed the picture to Damion behind him._

"_Miss Ackermann it would be wise to come back here," he called, taking the picture. He opened her bag, searching through it to find a place to put the picture. "We will be late for young Gabriel. His school will finish in five minutes."_

_A grin was on the white headed man's face as Faith slowly approached him, ignoring the comments of her father and Damion. Once she was a few feet in front of him, she wrung her fingers together, staring at the man. He stood up straight, taking his strong arm off the brick wall, only to let it fall to his side. A menacing grin was plastered on his face, his eyes just as dark and mad yet Faith didn't feel or even show fear. She just stood, watching him closely; almost as if she knew every intricate detail of his life, his personality and his mind._

_Eventually, after the long drawing silence, he parted his lips, speaking in a deep tone that matched his face and eyes. "It seems that murderers attract each other, no?"_

"_It seems that way," she nodded, her blonde locks covered her eyes slightly. "And who may I have the pleasure of greeting?"_

"_Let's keep this strictly hidden," he said. "You've got the blood mark in your hair," he looked at her roots. In a sharp movement, he had reached foreword, taking her hair in a tight grasp, pulling her foreword. The young girl cried out when he pulled her painfully, a tear uncontrollably ran down her cheek. Before she knew it, her father and Damion were by her side, pulling her off the ground she had been thrown against, wiping the blood off her cheek. The man had torn her skin; she had tried to fight back yet she was too weak. As they pulled her up to her feet, she saw him swiftly turning the corner without a second word._

"A murderer attracts a murderer …"

Gaignun turned to her, frowning a little. "Pardon, Faith?"

"Ah, nothing, nothing, honey," she smiled, leaning her head on Gaignun. He felt something warm in his stomach as she called him that name. He tightened the blanket around her body as they walked up the steps to the porch, Damion close at their heel.

"All that's missing is the foul stench of blood," Gabriel couldn't help but comment as he stood up straight, moving to the door.

"It won't feel much like home again then," Faith sighed sarcastically; Gaignun's fingers smoothing over hers to keep her calm.

Suddenly, Gabriel turned around to them. With a face full of terrifying anger, he moved to face; his nose barely an inch from hers as he stared deep into her eyes, making hers widen as she looked back; her skin beginning to tremble.

"This place isn't home to you _anymore_!" he hissed loudly. "We got rid of you, we _hate_ you. We've _always_ hated you. You're a damn nuiscence and if you ever _dare_ to think of this place as _your_ home I swear to God I'll _make_ you _regret _it."

He raised his fisted hand in the air. Gaignun tore his hand from Faith's, about to pull him away from his sister but it was too late. Gabriel had already hit his sibling with such force it sent her to the ground. She fell to the ground, whimpering as she did so. If it had been a normal young woman they would've yelled but from the pain Faith had experience before, it was nothing compared to it. The seconds passed slowly as much happened. Her hand reached up to her sore cheek, the bruise already magically appearing as she felt anger towards her brother; though her eyes were running gently with tears.

Gaignun had grabbed hold of Gabriel's arms, pulling him away from Faith so he couldn't hit her again. He squirmed against Gaignun, too weak to push the U.R.T.V off his body. He was a strong man, yet against Gaignun, a fully trained U.R.T.V, he didn't stand a chance. As Gaignun pulled Gabriel away, sending him into Luis's arms so that he could go over and tend to Faith, the one he loved, he remembered being a child again, with Rubedo and Albedo.

How many times had he done this kind of thing between them? Being the younger twin, Albedo was weaker then Rubedo – much weaker though he was still strong. They would get into fights, Gaignun always being the one to drag a brother away, to stop him from pounding into his twin so hard they'd be sent to the medical room for the day. Or for a few days, like the one scrap Rubedo and Albedo had been involved in when they were nine years old. One spefic memory quickly flew through his head as he let go of Gabriel, making sure the angry man was firmly in Luis's arms; not to harm Faith again.

"_All he's gotta do is just regenerate! What's the problem?" Albedo asked casually; his eyes so innocently childlike as he looked at his confused brothers. Nigredo __frowned as he stared at his older brother, who was providing him with so much confusion, though he was refusing to show it. Though he was the youngest of the trio, the youngest of all the U.R.T.V's, he was the only one who could make sense during times; who could speak without saying anything to somewhat confuse anyone else._

"_R-Regenerate …?" Rubedo repeated. Nigredo looked to his redheaded brother for a split second. Though the glance was fast he was able to see the mix of emotion's running through his brothers iced eyes, like they were a window. He was confused, that was for sure, but he was almost fearful. At that point did Rubedo know what would happen? Did Rubedo know all along of Albedo's powers to make him regenerate, thus stopping the chance of death for him?_

_And was he frightened of __**knowing**__ it would all be__** real**__?_

"_Regenerate," Albedo repeated the word for the third time, as if it would un-confuse everything. "Like this."_

_As Albedo pulled out the gun, pushing the trigger so that the silver bullet would fly into his head, instantly "killing" him, all the pair of them could do was scream at the terrible sight; their hearts pounding as they believed they had just lost their, albeit strange, brother. Then, to Nigredo's relief, his white head regenerated back, just like Albedo had said. And then Rubedo snapped, his temperamental anger shinning through as he screamed at his younger twin, hitting him to the ground. Nigredo had grabbed hold of Rubedo, holding him back from his brother as the white head cried._

Though there was just a small similarity between the present and the memory, he couldn't help but thinking of it. Unlike the memory, actually the complete opposite, the victim hit to the floor didn't stay and whimper into their hands. Hell no; Faith did the complete opposite to that. She quickly sprinted to her shaking feet, almost falling to the ground as she struggled to gain her balance. Gaignun's eyes widened as she ran past him, just as he was about to help her up to her feet and kiss her gently on the cheek; telling her it was all okay. The young woman ran to her brother, grabbing him by the collar and with unbelievable strength, pulled him from Luis and slammed him into the wall.

"Kill me off then!" Gabriel taunted as he stared at the angry Faith deep in the eye.

"I'll do it," she hissed; her tone completely different to what Gaignun had heard. Luis helplessly watched; Damion stood at the top of the stairs, unsure of what to do. Any false move could result in all of their deaths, but no moves would result in Gabriel's death. "You know I'll do it."

"Go on then," he grinned. "Do it, kill me. Your desire for the taste of a blood stained corpse still lingers. It has done for years hasn't it? All those years of being a Realian, with no memories … God that must have been painful …" he grinned as she stared at him; her grip tight as she put a hand on his chest. "Did you feel it? Did you want the taste?"

In a split second, flesh was being torn along with the white shirt Gabriel was wearing. An inch deep incision was being made on his left shoulder, finishing just under his chest bone. The blood trickled down to the floor in a split second, before Faith quickly tore her fingers away. She began to breathe quickly and deeply as she stared at her brother, who had yelled out in pain; as if someone had just stabbed him with a knife. She grinned happily as she watched him fold to the floor, like a wet, weak piece of paper. Her heart happily pounded against her chest as she caused her brother pain, something she had wanted to do for years. She stepped foreword, blood running down the porch as he stared at the floor, breathing deeply.

"_How do you want to die, Gabriel?" Faith asked her brother one day. They sat on the porch __swing; her feet barely touched the ground as she watched her brother carefully; her twelve year old face looking at him with a small smile._

"_Mum said we shouldn't be talking about stuff like that …" he quietly whispered._

"_Gabriel, you like talking about stuff like that," she smiled. "Besides, I want you to die in a way you wish to."_

_He gasped. "That … that's …" he shook his head. "Dark, dark, dark, dark. You're dark, very, very dark Faith."_

"_Please tell me," she whispered. "It's no big deal. We all have to face death one day."_

"_I …" he couldn't help but smile a little. "I want to die in a cool way like you can make people die." The young, innocent boy smiled._

"Do you still wish to die that way, Gabriel?" Faith calmly asked. Her tone was somewhat one Gaignun knew as he placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to calm her down. "You told me you wanted to die in a way I'd kill people." She sighed deeply, shaking her head. "If you still wish to die that way, I'll do it for you …"

"Why …" he groaned as he held his wound. "Why are you … offering me life or death?"

"I'm not," Faith said. "I don't control whether people die, or whether people live. People _have_ to die. People _have_ to live."

"Then _what_ are you?" he glared. "You're saying you'll let me decide whether to die or not but you … you take lives of people without thinking. Without letting them choose."

"Answer the question, Gabriel, before I answer it for you," she glared.

"Faith …" Gaignun whispered, pulling her close to him. Curiously, Gabriel looked up, watching Gaignun pull Faith close to him. His palm opened, revealing the blood red number and Gabriel began to hysterically laugh. The pair of them stared down at the man, wondering what had tickled him so much into hysterics.

"Hahaha, oh how funny!" he continued to laugh. "No wonder you've acted so kind, what with the U.R.T.V 669 at your side. The one that can control peoples emotions!"

Faith's eyes widened as she turned to Gaignun, completely taken back. Truth be told, around Gaignun her murderous thoughts had dyed down; around him she felt like an average girl; she felt loved and cared for, which she hadn't felt properly before in her life. And it had all been a sham? He had been controlling her emotions like she was a doll? As she stared at him, she wondered what it would be like still with Albedo. Would she be as kind and as confident?

"Faith, please don't look at me like that," he pleaded. "I haven't done such a thing. I would never control your emotions. I _love_ you the way you are," he said, putting a hand in her hair so that she faced him. "I love how you smile a the littlest things, I love how you can stick up for yourself," he kissed her forehead. "I love how you've become so confident over the last few days," a peck on the cheek. "I would never wish to change you. Even with all this … all of this 'murderous' stuff going on … I still love you …"

The clouds suddenly opened up, as rain suddenly pelted from the sky. The rain was hard, but luckily they were stood under the porch; sheltered from the rain. Faith's eyes couldn't help but dart from Gaignun to the loud distraction from the sky. In a few seconds everything was wet as they all stood in silence. But as usual, Gabriel was the one to break the silence.

"It looks as if the angles are crying in our wake," he smirked. "Don't you think, Faith?"

"You know more about them then I ever would do," she couldn't help but hiss slightly. "Other hand of God."

"Reaper's doll …" he laughed. "Ah …" he tightened his eyes shut as he ran his fingers across the cut she had inflicted on him. A little line of white light traced his finger as it ran across the red, bloody flesh. As he ran it across the wound a few times, it began to magically heal; the flesh coming back to itself, closing the wound off. "Say good night …"

Faith turned to her brother and couldn't help but show a grin. "I see mother has taught you something useful, other hand of God. Wherever was that power five years ago, hmm?"

Gabriel glared up at his sister; then his sharp eyes darted to Gaignun, who was stood by Faith again, holding her hand tightly. The wound she had created was still wrapped in bandages; on show by his moved sleeves. Noticing this, a laugh was let out of Gabriel's lip; something cruel and taunting as he continued to heal himself.

After the long laugh, everyone else staring at him in confusion, he finally pulled himself together and spoke in a voice; his words directed to Gaignun. "I see the girls already harmed you. Not a reliable one is she? I wonder what else she'll do… I bet you she will kill you by the end of the week. Oh well, Sinner's deserve to die. How old is she? Nineteen, no?"

Gaignun felt disgusted by the words from Gabriel's mouth; Faith just furiously glared at her brother, resisting the urge to make another cut on his body; this one the one to kill him for good. Oh how wonderful that would be to her heart! To feel his warm blood splatter on her cheeks; the ruby red substance running from the tear in his flesh. How … how relieving that would be. She could shut him up; stop him from saying such things that she would do to Gaignun. As she held tighter to him, tears edging their way to the rims of her eyes as she tried not to give into the craving, she knew that she would never harm Gaignun intentionally. She could never bring herself to do it.

"What does her age matter?" Gaignun asked, looking at Gabriel as he finished healing his wound.

"Well … it does seem quite sinful to sleep with a girl barely six years younger then you …" he said, grinning as he felt the anger emerge from both Gaignun and Faith. "How does it feel … how does it feel to fuck a child?"

"Shut your Goddamn mouth!" Faith screamed. Her eyes flashed a bright colour of ice blue as she suddenly lunged foreword again, wanting to destroy her brother. She could taste his blood; she could feel herself using her powers on him to tear his skin apart; to kill him.

Just as she was about to tear from Gaignun's grip, he grabbed her tighter, moving his hand just above her elbow. With a sharp tug and pull, he had full control over the smaller person. He twisted his body as she unexpectedly was pulled away; stopping her little frenzy before it could even begin. Gaignun grabbed Faith by both of her arms, though she wasn't putting up much of a fight; too stunned from Gaignun's sudden movement. Calmly, with composure he made her walk a few steps foreword, towards the steps. Damion carefully watched, wondering whether the black headed man would take Faith back home; he was ready to stop him but surprisingly, he took Faith out into the rain and sat her down on the fourth step.

"Calm, calm," he whispered, sitting beside her. The rain pattered their heads; making them soaking wet within a few minutes. He placed a hand on her damp forehead as she stared into his eyes with her emotionless ones.

As his fingers ran over her skin, he couldn't help but think of the time they had first met. She had acted so emotionless, so unreal though he could see the cover up. He could see through her like she was a window; though he hadn't seen this. He hadn't seen her murderous side, her dark side, all he could see as he met the girl, believing she was a Kirschwasser, was a young woman with a lot of spunk. He could see her kind soul, her loving nature and her zest for life and as he stared into her emotionless eyes; lost deep in her conscious, he thought the same. He could see the true person in her, which wasn't the murderous side. He couldn't help but sigh deeply as he brushed her hair with his other hand.

"I believe in you …" he whispered. "You're not a blood thirsty murderer … your nothing of the sort. Please stay calm. Breathe, Fay, breathe."

Though the air was freezing cold, her skin was boiling hot from the sudden rage she had felt towards her brother. The raindrops felt good against her clammy skin, her eyes softened as she looked at Gaignun. After a few moments of staring into his eyes, for what reason she didn't quite understand but the eye contact had most defiantly calmed her down, she stood to her feet, Gaignun following her as she went to the door.

"Here, Miss Ackermann," Damion offered, quickly skirting in front of the rain covered woman. He put his hand on the door handle; about to push it down to open the door when he glanced to her. "Are you okay?"

"Yes," she nodded. "Now … may we please come in and get this entire thing over with?"

"_Good rain, good," the twelve year old Faith smiled as she began to clamber out her bedroom window. The rain poured from the sky; watching it reminded her of her showers. She put her feet firmly on the first floor roof; the roof straight for her to stand on. The sky was pitch black and her ice blue eyes looked up at the stars, __mesmerized for a moment. The rain ran on her face; making the sticky red blood on her cheeks become thinner as it ran off her skin, merging with the water. Her finger came up to her cheek, taking some of the red liquid away. She stared at the substance, just about able to see it from the dim light in her bedroom window. She grinned widely, watching the red liquid on her finger._

"_How are you tonight?" a __soft voice asked her, pulling her sharply from her thoughts. Snapping her head to the direction it came from, an airy gasp left her lips. It seemed to be one of shock but then the rosy lips curled into a small smile._

"_I am fine," she smiled, hiding her blood stained hands behind her back; hidden from the white headed boy. "How are you, God?"_

_He chucked a little, almost embarrassed. "Please, please don't call me that," he grinned. "Let's leave that stuff out, okay? This is just a meeting between us two. Creating a friendship foundation."_

"_An illusion?" she asked, her guard up._

"_No, of course not!" he gasped. "Faith, we are not destined to be enemies. God has always taught to forgive and forget, to 'love thy neighbour'."_

"_I see …" she said, now wiping her bloodied hands on the backs of her jeans, wanting the blood to be hidden as a pang of guilt came over her. "I haven't seen the white headed man since the incident at school …"_

"_I wouldn't have expected you to …" he whispered, sitting down on the wet roof. His gesture signalled for Faith to sit by him, yet she perched a few feet away, not wanting him to see or smell the blood lingering on her body. "He probably has someone else on his mind, rather then you. He's not interested anymore, do you understand?"_

"_Yes sir," she nodded quickly like an obedient child. _

"_Don't call me that," he smirked. "Just call me by my name, I won't mind, Faith. We don't need to use formalities anymore."_

"_Ah … right, Yeshua," she nodded. "Gabriel is getting angry with me …" she said, almost saddened and disappointed at the same time. Yeshua turned his head to Faith, looking deeply at her. Her head hung as she stared down, watching the water hit the ground. She sighed deeply as she put her palms foreword, letting Yeshua's tranquil blue eyes look at her blood stained hands._

_A tear ran down her cheek as she looked away from his shocked expression; forcing herself to speak, albeit in a low whisper. "The angels are crying in my wake … I'm quite surprised you are not …"_

"_Faith …" he whispered, shaking his head. He sighed deeply as he watched the young girl silently cry. Unsure of what to do, he changed the subject, not really wanting to know what happened nor wanting her to go through explaining what had happened. "I've asked Damion to take you to the Cinema this weekend. He's planning to take you to the fair too, if the weather is nice."_

_She sniffed, wiping tears, blood and rainwater from her cheeks. "T-thank you …" she smiled, her voice shaking a little._

"_Your very welcome," he grinned, happy she was smiling. "He said 'Don't expect me to go on any rides though! I don't want to throw up!'" Faith laughed after Yeshua's attempt at doing a perfectly posh English accent as he intimidated Damion._

"_That was rubbish, Yeshua," she smiled playfully._

"_Oh? Then how about you try to do a better one, hmm?" he grinned._

"_Fine!" she agreed, moving to sit down properly. She straightened her posture, half closing her eyes as she folded her arms. "Oh my! Miss Ackermann, Master Clementine is there anything I can do for you? Make you a drink? Clean your toilet? How about lick your feet?"_

_After a little giggle, Faith settled down, smiling widely. "I do like him though. He's a very kind man."_

"_Yes he is," Yeshua nodded, smiling at the line of kindness in her personality. Though she was so happy and carefree, he had to keep his guard up. The girl was dangerous; Yeshua knew that more then anyone else did. He was being daring by sitting on the roof with her, knowing she had just committed an act of murder; a sin against the God he followed so greatly._

_While he thought, Faith watched him, curious. After the long moment of silence, she cleared her throat, gaining his attention before speaking. "Yeshua … why are you doing this for me?" she asked._

"_Doing this?" he repeated. "Do what exactly?"_

"_Being here for me," she explained. "Not … not killing me like you should be doing. You're a follower of God, whilst I … I do bad things … why are you doing this?"_

_He sighed a little. "I want to help you, not kill you. I want to be able to help you get out of this. Your brother is a 'special' person himself, which I'm sure you know about. Surely you cannot be as evil as you're made out to be. And I plan to help you …"_

_Faith smiled gratefully at Yeshua._


	22. Ever Dream

**|| Chapter [Twenty-Two] ||  
Ever Dream**

The front room was a painful sight. Her heart began to pound painfully against her chest as a sickening urge to run, run far, far away came into her stomach. With her trembling legs that were quickly turning to jelly, she forgot all about the world around her; her stunning eyes just staring foreword, unable to contemplate what she was staring at. It was agonizingly painful to stare at the exact replica of her old home. The same photos were on the same shelves, the furniture organized in the exact same way she and chaos had seen the previous day during the dive. Everything was perfectly placed around the house. Why it was like that was something she didn't understand, nor tried to knowing how utterly mystifying it would be to her. For ages her family lived in sorrow and once they had gotten rid of their murderous Faith they kept their home exactly how it was? How strange, to say the least. Perhaps it was because they wanted to be reminded of the _happy_ times, she didn't know. All she knew was that those "happy" times were so rare they were worth holding onto, like a precious gem.

Which is exactly what she felt like as her body was pulled against Gaignun's chest. He wrapped his arms tightly around her body as Gabriel shoved rudely past them, entering the house that belonged to him. Luis followed close behind like a dog that knew nothing else but to obey its Master. As usual, the kind man Damion hung back, waiting for 'Miss Ackermann' to enter the home first, politeness being the strongest trait of the middle aged man.

Faith hesitated, Gaignun patiently waiting behind her. His fingers smoothed over her body, making her skin quiver. She reminded herself how none of this would matter. It would last barely half an hour, and then she could go home with Gaignun, the man who loved her more then anyone or anything else in the world. If she was lucky he'd take her out to take her mind of things or she would be able to spend the entire day with him. Her eyes still stared foreword at the room; Luis sat down on the edge of the couch whilst Gabriel had run to another room; which would be the kitchen if it was exactly like the other home.

Sighing deeply and releasing as much anguish as she could; her heart began to beat at an even, albeit fast, pace. Her foot lifted up, hovering a little above the ground as she took a step foreword; one of the hardest steps she had made in her life. As she slowly stepped into the house, she felt like she was back with Albedo again. The dismal thought she had known for a long time came back into her heart. She felt like she had done something terribly wrong and entering the house would cause pain for her. Just like with Albedo; if she ever did anything wrong she resented having to enter the room he was in. It was always so silent with a miserable atmosphere that sent shivers down her spine. She would never know what her punishment would be or even if she would receive a punishment, much like then in the home.

The door shut behind Faith and Gaignun by the hands of Damion. The polite man led the pair of them to the couch so that they could sit down. Faith stared at the couch as if it were a feral animal that would eat her up before she could sit down properly. Gaignun's arms left her body as he sat down, his fingers wrapping around her hip from where he sat. Her skin trembled from his touch; sensitive in such a place but she was too busy, too lost, in her own little mind to do anything about it. She stared foreword, her hand hovering at the slight misshape at the bottom of her shirt. Underneath the red material was where the gun was hidden, strapped to her body with the white belt around her blue jeans. Suspiciously, she glanced to the door where the kitchen was; the wooden door firmly shut as she heard Gabriel's muffled voice on the other end.

Gaignun tugged at her hip; his strength making her take a step back. She gasped as the back of her knees banged into the edge of the couch and for a moment she lost balance entirely, turning around sharply and almost falling onto Gaignun. He had moved his arms, taking her by the elbows as she bent foreword as she fell, stopping her fragile body from falling onto his. Her legs took the rest of the task to balance her and soon she was half stood, still close to falling onto Gaignun if she were to get slightly knocked or pushed. He chuckled slightly as he suddenly pulled her onto the couch, making her whimper slightly from his sudden tug. He had pulled her body next to his with such ease it was shocking to Faith to find herself sitting properly, when seconds ago she was about to fall on him, and probably hit her head against his whilst doing so.

"What did you do that for?" was all she could gasp as his hands let go of her. She shuffled a bit, getting comfy on the couch and adjusting the gun so it didn't dig into her bones.

"I wanted you to sit down," he smiled; his emerald eyes flashing playfully. "It wasn't my fault that your balance let you down."

"My balance?" she smirked, forgetting momentarily about their surroundings as she fell into the little bubble with Gaignun again. "Don't forget you were the one who pulled me down! Pulled Gaignun, pulled! I could've dislocated an arm with your strength!"

"Oh you know I'd never let myself do anything like that," he said, kind of confused by her little speech. He wound her hair around his finger, staring deep into her eyes; his lips curled into a perfect smile. "We'll be less then five minutes, okay?" he whispered into her ear, letting his breath tickle her skin. "You don't need to do this. It will be fine," he soothingly said, brushing his lips against her cheek and down her jaw line.

The noise of the door being pushed open could be heard, but neither of them turned their heads until a voice entered their ears.

"Master Gaignun!" a woman's voice gasped. "Such a privilege it is to be in your presence."

Faith was the first to snap her heard to the person; her eyes widening as she found herself staring at the woman who had nursed her from the moment she was born. Tendrils of long, ringlet curled, ruby red locks frame the delicate face of a stunning woman. Her features were pointed and thin, her eyes framed by thick eyelashes, which made her eyes look darker with her brown gems. The hair was cut different; layers curling onto her face to hide some of her magnificent features Faith hadn't remembered were so beautiful and angelic. Even Gaignun seemed taken back by the woman's stunning appearance, with a thin fragile body much like Faith's, yet much taller. The woman had to have been the same height or a little taller then Gaignun himself. Wearing a beautiful dress that was yellow colour, with red lacing on it, she looked as elegant as an angel. Gabriel stood by her side, and at that moment Faith could see it.

They were both so elegant; so alike as they stood by each other; both angels in their own way. They were good, not bad like Faith. If she were to stand by them she knew she would wreck it, with her strange red and pink hair, cute facial features rather then elegant, and small height. Faiths lips parted as she stared at her mother, her body beginning to tremble.

Her mothers' eyes looked at her daughter. A sharp feeling of guilt came over Faith as she quickly turned her head, unable to look her mother in the eye as if she had failed. She felt like crawling into the corner and crying from the sharp, almost unwanted look her mother had given her. She shouldn't have been there; she didn't belong there. It was as if within the one look she had felt all the resentment her mother had truly felt for her daughter all her life. _"I was so wrong …" _she thought. Instead of being angry at this woman for letting her "become" a kirshwasser, to go into the hands of Albedo the man that beat her black and blue everyday, all she could feel was guilt. She felt like she should have stayed there with Master, with no memories and no more annoying the woman with making her remember what had happened; what she had created.

"Oh great, she's going to cry," Gabriel angrily muttered, turning his head from his sister in disgust. Their mother stayed silent, looking down at Faith with thoughtful eyes.

"Come here …" Gaignun whispered, putting his hands on her arms. She resisted for a few moments, but then allowed Gaignun to take her. With strength, he pulled the light young woman onto his lap, holding her close to him, showing how much she was precious to him. He sat up properly, holding Faith's back against his chest, her head just under his nose.

"It's okay …" he whispered, kissing her head. "Its fine … don't be sad. I'm here, I'm here …"

Though no tears had been shed at that moment, he had defiantly prevented them from shedding with his loving behaviour to her; soothing her. Faith's mother watched him intently, with an unreadable expression on her face. As Gaignun looked up to her, even he couldn't sense the emotion running through her heart. He couldn't sense anything for some reason, as if she was somehow blocking off her mental waves one way or another, which was strange to the black headed man.

"You seem to have created a bond with Faith," she calmly said. Damion looked over to Faith who was looking at anything and anyone but her mother and he couldn't help but feel pity towards her. The mother looked at Luis. "Have you any wounds?"

"Yes ma'am," he nodded, his voice trembling. "Just the one. She bit me."

"Feral cat …" the mother hissed under her breath as she gestured for Luis to follow Gabriel into the kitchen. The suited man got up off the couch, following the mother's orders and retreated to the kitchen with Faith's brother.

The mother sighed deeply, looking over at Gaignun and through her daughter. "I do apologize for such circumstances, Master Gaignun," she said softly. "And I do not expect you to guard Faith any longer. You have done enough for her, though to be honest I do not appreciate you fuelling her mind with her memories."

"She has a right to know," Gaignun gritted his teeth, angry at the woman's ignorance. "And I shall guard her all my life. I don't like the way you speak. Did you expect me to just leave her in the hands of my brother, where she believed herself to be a machine?!"

"Yes I did," she answered, folding her arms sternly. Though she was a beautiful woman, she had a dark glare that sent shivers down Faith's spine. "Its better for us all to get rid of the Reaper."

"It's cruelty," Gaignun said, raising his voice. "Your daughter is a magnificent woman. She's kind, she's loving and she's smart. She's so damn unique and you just wanted to throw her away?"

"Gaignun …" Faith whispered.

"I didn't want to throw her away," she glared. "I tried to help, yet each time I gave her the 'get out of jail free' card, she threw it back in my face. She will do the same to you, I promise you that."

Opening his mouth to speak, he was rudely interrupted by the knocking of the door. A smirk appeared on the mothers face as she sat down, watching Damion as he slowly made his way to the door, to let whoever was knocking it inside. The mother sat down on the couch opposite where Gaignun and Faith sat, giving the man a kind and warm smile.

"My name is Emilia Clementine," she introduced.

"Clementine?" Gaignun repeated, frowning a little. "Your second name is not Ackermann like Faith's?"

"It was before I got married," she said, lifting up her left hand. The simple, traditional gold band shone in the light. From the smile Emilia gave it was as if she had forgotten Faith had spectacularly murdered her husband just a few years ago during a strange rage.

"Please come in, Sir," Damion graciously requested, opening the door even wider. Gaignun gave another glance to Emilia, and she was smiling at the visitor.

"Oh my God!" Faith breathlessly cried, standing suddenly to her feet so that Gaignun's arms tore away from her. Her eyes were widened in pure shock; her face frozen as she stared, Gaignun's head turned to the door Damion had shut. And stood there, casually as always, was chaos.

"chaos?!" she whispered, staring at the white headed boy. With a concerned look, she was the first person he looked at in the room, not caring one bit for Gaignun being there, who had expected him to be onboard the Elsa with Jr. and the crew, who had yet to depart. He had managed to get them to hang on for one more day, knowing he was to be beckoned by Faith's mother, to see the girl. It was something he couldn't refuse.

He quickly stepped foreword, looking at the girl two inches smaller then him. His face was one of pure anxiety, something she had never seen him express before. "Are you okay? How long have you been here?" he asked, putting his gloved hands on her shoulders. About to ask another question, Emilia interrupted him before he could even part his lips.

"chaos, how wonderful of you to join us," she smiled. "You do remember dear old Faith don't you?"

"Of course," he said, looking curiously at her now blue and gold eyes. Last time he had seen her she was in the hospital, on the verge of death from the attack Albedo had put on her. "We've been through much more since the past," he said. "What do you know, Faith?"

"Nothing," she said, shaking her head. "I remember you, on the roof," Again another shake. "I'm ever so confused, Yeshua! I'm so confused."

"This isn't right," chaos said, looking to Emilia. "You shouldn't have brought her here. She isn't meant to come back to the past; you had assured me on that."

"You had assured me that she wouldn't even begin to remember," Emilia hissed. "You had told me we would have gotten rid of her murderous ways. You were meant to destroy her, Yeshua."

Faith suddenly pulled away from chaos, feeling fearful of being around him. Could he really be meant to kill her, despite how kind and protective he had been over the time she had known him? And the faint memories she had, she could remember much of his kindness. How or why she knew him, that was unanswered, but she knew that she did. When she was normal, she knew chaos.

"I could never destroy her," he said. "You have forgotten the ways of God – "thou shalt not murder"."

"The rule even she cannot follow," Emilia yelled, pointing to the Faith, who was watching intently. After a long moment of silence, Faith's lips curled into a smile, yet with a dark, sinister slant.

"Mother, mother, mother," she tutted, shaking her head in disapproval as she spoke with a strange tone to her voice.

"Faith, don't …" chaos whispered pleadingly in slight horror, knowing the tone o-too well.

"You had me wrapped around your finger," she said. "I wanted you to love me, I wanted you to have me as your daughter. You care for Gabriel more then you do me. You won't understand, will you mother? I urge for blood, I urge for death … But … I'm not a rampaging murderer … I have yet to kill Damion, Yeshua or even Gaignun. I wouldn't dare kill them but you … You mother …"

A large grin appeared on Faith's face as she stared at her victim. The blue in her eyes had taken on a brighter shade; almost glowing madly as she sniggered. "Your just a lost cause …" she grinned. "One that is not even …" she laughed a little again. "Oh mother, your not even my mother, are you?"

"Faith … I …" her face suddenly dropped to something strange. Chaos' head snapped towards her, his blue eyes widened as he stared at the redhead.

"You … are not her mother?" he gasped.

"Not biologically …" she whispered.

"Well then," Faith grinned, lifting up her right hand. "I suppose that this isn't much of a Sin, seeing as though a child is meant to "honour thy mother and thy father"."

"You had killed your father," she smirked, completely unmoved by the fact Faith could kill her at any second. The girl just stared at her for a few moments, almost dropping the murderous side but then she yelled, telling her to mind her own business, and swung her arm down.

After the long cry of the woman, blood could be smelled in Faith's nostrils. A feeling of relief came over her as the woman went limp on the couch, Damion racing to her side. Gaignun raced to Faith's, and in an instant the murderous, sadistic side of the girl had disappeared, as if he was a cure for that side of her. The black headed man held her close to him, not judging the fact she had just murdered the woman sitting there. She cried into his chest, her personality taking a swift change as usual. He hushed her, soothing her as chaos went to the other room, to sort of things between Luis and Gabriel. She could hear yelling, swears being directed to her and the crying of her brother. Gaignun protected her as he led her outside in the rain. The memories blended into one horrible blur. As if she was awakening she found herself sitting in the back of the car, her hair damp from the rain, her face damp from her tears and her body shaking more then it ever had done before.

The blue blanket was tightly wrapped around her body, along with the strong arms of Gaignun. Her head had been pulled down to his chest, his face in her hair. The car was moving slowly in the dark morning light. With her eyes, she could see the white hair of chaos as he drove the car smoothly away from the house; everyone in silence.

"I'm … sorry …" she whispered, digging deeper into Gaignun's chest where she felt safe. In his arms she felt like her; she felt real.

"It's okay …" he whispered. "Calm down, take a breath and be calm …"

"I hadn't recognised you," chaos suddenly said, making Faith's attention be put on him. She stared at his head, wanting to hear more. As if he heard her mind request for more information, he continued to speak. "When we had first met, onboard the Durandle I hadn't realized it was you until you harmed Momo. Something in your eyes told me that it was you, which was why later I had acted like I did. It's been … years …"

* * *

"_Honey, this is Yeshua," her mother said gently to her eleven year old daughter. Sitting on the porch swing, she pulled her attention from the world she watched so carefully to her mother. Emilia stood on the step, looking as beautiful as usual; the rays of the sun casting down on her hair to make it more blood like then ruby. Stood behind her was a figure, a person, she thought she would never forget._

_His hair was stunning white, resting a few inches above his shoulders. He was a soft looking boy, around five or so years older then the girl. His eyes were the most magnificent, pure things she had ever seen in her entire life. Even looking into them made her turn away, as if she felt like she wasn't allowed to look into such beautiful gems of blue. Like a lost child, all Faith could do was stare foreword, her fingers running across the lines in the wood of the porch swing, taking in every little intricate detail she had done whenever in such a strange state she would rest on the swing and watch the world she longed to explore, longed to be a part of._

"_Honey," Emilia patiently repeated, trying to get her daughters attention. "Don't be rude. Yeshua travelled far to greet you, it is only polite that you come and say hello."_

"_Please, let me," he whispered in Emilia's ear, brushing politely past her once she nodded. He headed up the porch steps, feeling his skin cool in the shade. In the corner of her eye, she could see his lips curled into a soft smile. To her surprise it was directed towards her; something she hadn't expected to get. The last incident was barely two days ago and someone was smiling at her._

_Someone had their lips curled into a soft grin, directed towards the little girl and it seemed like they meant it. His smile attracted her, though when she looked up at his face, his dark skin and light hair, she felt like they were completely different – they was something separating them, something cold and almost menacing, but the smile kept those feelings behind a barrier. She knew they were there, yet she didn't dawdle on them._

"_May I have a seat?" he politely asked. She wasn't sure whether it was politeness or fear that she would kill him if he did anything wrong, yet she nodded, scooting up a bit. Emilia had disappeared around the back of the house, leaving the two of them to talk._

_Yeshua smiled down at the little girl again. Switching his gaze to the sky, he sighed deeply, showing how content he was. "It's a beautiful day, isn't it?"_

"_Yes Sir," she nodded quickly._

"_Faith … do you believe in God?" he asked her gently. She snapped her head to him, frozen by his question. Her cheeks burned red as she thought of God looking down at her, disapproving of whatever reasons she had for killing people. She didn't like the idea of someone so powerful hating her for murdering, yet she couldn't care less in some other ways. The child kept staring at Yeshua, until he sighed again, shutting his eyes gently._

"_There are many ways we can help you," he stated, obviously knowing of her murderous ways. "You're quite … different and I do not understand the powers you have been given … But I'm not going to hurt you."_

_She smirked. "You wouldn't be able to if you could."_

_

* * *

_

_She brought her mouth to Gaignun's, her lips pressing gently against his. With both bodies completely bare, she pushes hers against his, desiring him in a way she never had done before. The relief of finally murdering her mother had given her a strange sensation, something of freedom; as if she was finally normal again. Reacting in the same way, Gaignun pulls her closer, touching her smooth skin with his dark fingers. Invisible electricity crackled soundlessly from his touches; excitement over coming both of them as he slid his tongue into her mouth. He leaned back on the bed, lying down with her on top of him; her body lighter then he remembered. Her hand brushed through his hair, whilst the other one was resting elsewhere, not being used. Gaignun shut his eyes in lust, kissing her passionately, wanting her to know how much he loved her._

_Suddenly, Faith pulled away from the kiss, making Gaignun's eyes suddenly widen. As he looked up at her, shivers ran down his spine like never before. Like at the house, she smiled with the strange menacing slant. A feeling of dread quickly sweeps through him as her eyes mingle into the ice blue shade, glowing furiously in a strange mad way. An instant later, he could feel a cold circle being pushed against his skull. And before he could even realize what it was, the defining bang of the gun tore through the silence of the bedroom as she pushed the trigger; the silver bullet doing its worst work as it ripped through Gaignun's skull, spraying his blood everywhere, and making his body fall limp under hers._

When her delicate body suddenly convulsed above his, his eyes widened in surprise from her suddenly, most likely unconscious movement. They were resting in the family room, Faith having fallen asleep in the car two hours ago. Chaos was upstairs, speaking to Jr. and the gang, whilst Gaignun had insisted on resting with Faith. He had gotten off for a short hour and a half nap, spending the last half an hour playing with the hair of his innocent Faith, not believing how she was a murderous girl and trying to think of why she acted in such a way.

But her sudden movement of her mind pushing her from her slumber, made him jump in turn. He had seen her stir, moan a few times; evidence of a nightmare but he hadn't expected her to wake with such a show. Her eyes widened as she awoke, staring down at his chest for a few moments, deep in thought. Slowly, she wrapped her arms tight around him, her body shaking. With his hand, he swept over her forehead, feeling the thin layer of cold sweat. Her heart was pounding furiously against her; even he could feel it as she held herself tighter to him. After the long moment of silence, he spoke softly.

"Did you have a nightmare, Fay?" he asked. Like a little child, she nodded, nuzzling him. "There, there, it's okay. Do you want to talk about it?"

Feeling an overwhelming guilt for picturing herself murdering Gaignun in such a way, she shook her head, whimpering ever so slightly. After long minutes, she changed the subject. "Is … is chaos going to Old Miltia?"

"Yes he is," Gaignun nodded.

"I would like to go too," she said, wanting to spend more time with chaos, in hopes of gaining back some of her memories. Besides, there was a good chance of seeing Albedo …

… And why would she _not_ want to visit the man who she had known too before?

After all, _a murderer attracts a murderer._

**Comments – **Wow, I'm not doing well with the last few chapters, am I? WELL DON'T WORRY – XENOSAGA-NESS COMING UP SOON! Whoop =D Sorry for the lameass chapters [just because I use this word constantly, tis CRUMMY]. Thank you, thank you, THANKIES UBER MUCH for the reviews! They're so amazing, seriously, and like I've said before I'm so sorry I can't reply to them personally – I don't have enough time on the internet to do that, but I am uber grateful~ Seriously, without you guys I wouldn't have half the inspiration I have to write this story – I love ya'll dearly not queerly and I hope you enjoy this chapter [don't wanna disappoint yooouu]. Sorry about the faithxgaignun touchy-feely stuff. It's gonna get better soon, what with adding Xeno-ness into it. =] Thanks again! Xxx Btw sorry if Faith's emotions ever get uber confusing [its hard to make a character scared one moment, happy the next, then really, really sadistic after only to be depressed after that XD]. Lol my Religious Education lessons are finally paying off too [GAH R.E stuff was actually UBER hard to do so I hope ya'll like that little-aspect of it]


	23. Burned In My Mind

**Comments –** Okay, lame chapter only because I don't like the part on the Elsa that much, but it'll get better on the Stronghold – promise. The idea of chaos x Faith ness has come from Aiselne Phoenix Nocturnus, so all credit for that goes to her ENTIRELY [please don't hate me from using that idea, honey]. She gave me the idea via a great review she gave me and I couldn't help but use it. Btw, thank you guys again so much for giving me reviews – you guys have actually given me the confidence to begin my own original piece of writing, so thank you so much! :3 3

**|| Chapter [Twenty-Three] ||**

**Burned In My Mind**

"Come here," chaos lightly called, pulling the attention of the fresh Faith to him. She had changed after much convincing to Gaignun that she would be fine, that chaos would be there to protect her and that she could take care of herself.

With a faint, gentle smile on his face, chaos slowly strode over to Faith, his hands behind his back as he got strangely close to her. The muffled noises of Gaignun on the phone downstairs could be heard; breaking the weird, awkward silence as Faith stared into the magical gems of chaoses. Like she was once a child, she felt the emotion to turn her head away and so she did; so swiftly that her hair covered her eyes as she forced her gaze to the floor. His calming aura was in her heart. Never had she been as aware of the white headed boy's emotions as she did then. Why or how, she didn't know nor did she really care. She just wanted to get out of the strange situation and back to normality. And as if he could hear his thoughts, he moved back a step and spoke calmly.

"Gaignun has told me to give you these," he told her, bringing his hands from behind his back. Looking back up, she saw the same pocket knife Gaignun had given her during the dive in one hand and the beautiful silver gun in the other. As she stared at the gun, she furiously shivered, remembering the nightmare she had less then an hour ago; where the silver bullet that once rested in that gun, flew into the skull of Gaignun, killing him instantly and the fault had been all hers. With her hands trembling, she took the weapons, sliding them into her belt.

"Thank you …" she whispered, adjusting them. He noticed her trembling hands and reached over, patting her shoulder.

"It's okay," he told her. "Now …" he said, taking his arm back. "Do you know how to use Ether Magic?"

"Ether …" she searched her mind for a few seconds before nodding. "Yes Sir. But … I cannot heal people, nor can I defend them."

"Understandable with … whatever powers you have …" chaos said, looking her up and down curiously; searching her as if one look would understand what was really going on inside of her. After the few seconds, his gaze came back to her face. "What do you know?"

"I'm not doing it here!" she gasped a little, looking around the neat bedroom that belonged to Gaignun. Even the spare bedrooms in the house were beautiful, and she didn't wish to take her chance of destroying or wrecking one of them only for Gaignun to be mad. "I'll show you when we need them. When you need to have my powers used, alright?"

With a nod, chaos led them out of the bedroom. Faith was the first to run down the stairs, creating a racket as her trainers kept hitting the wooden steps. Eagerly, she grabbed her jacket, looking over at chaos who was halfway down the stairs. The beep of the phone being put down broke the silence and in an instant Gaignun was in the hallway, taking his black blazer off the hook.

"Here Gaignun," Faith said, holding up his tie for him. He smiled sweetly at her, taking the tie gently from her grip. He thanked her as he tied it around his neck, finally putting on his blazer. She smiled a little at him, pushing the nightmare from her mind.

Chaos came to their side, his hand on the door handle, about to open it. "Shall we be going?"

"Yes," Gaignun smiled sadly at Faith as he placed a cool hand on her warm, red cheek. "I'm going to take you to the Port, where you and chaos will go onboard the Elsa," he sighed deeply, looking pleadingly into her eyes. "You can stay here, you know? I can take you to the Foundation …" his voice became alluring as he tried to convince her to stay. "I'll have a vacation so we can spend all our time on the beach …" he kissed her forehead. "Just me and you."

"Gaignun …" she looked to the floor, trying not to give in to his wonderful request. "You can't have time off with the path to Old Miltia opened. And I can't sit around while all of this is happening. It might not help, but I want to go there. Besides …… it was my fault for letting Albedo take the Y-Data from Momo."

A sigh escaped his lips as he realized he would never win. Reluctantly, he nodded to chaos, letting him open the door and drove them to the Port, where he sadly parted from Faith.

* * *

_Thirteen year old Faith cried into her hands when she heard the shocking voice enter her ears. For the few seconds, the piercing words "Faith Ackermann, what the hell have you done?!" repeated themselves in her mind; she kept recalling how shocked, how terrified the voice had been when usually it was o-so calm and relaxing, showing little to none emotion. Her body trembled as she felt the presence of the young teenager she had known for years, yet who hadn't aged with her. He kept his beautiful appearance, something stable in her life. But the stable thing was also the most painful thing. She hated whenever he found out about whatever Sins she had committed. She hated whenever he caught her killing someone; she didn't want his beautiful gems to absorb and witness the cruelty of her one side, her sadistic personality. As she sat there, hearing the gasp of the boy, she couldn't help but snigger in her hands through the tears, finding it o-so amusing that he was o-so shocked; though she was still upset he had to see it._

"_Shh, shh, stop crying …" he whispered after taking a moment or two to absorb the sickening red sight in her bedroom. He pushed the knife out of the way as he sat down by the fragile girl, who was scrunching up like a piece of paper. He put a hand on her overly warm body, which was always warm whenever she would get into a rage. Under his fingers he could feel the trembling of her skin, which saddened him. She had such a kind side to her, though it was rarely shown. He could hear her sobs into her hands, but then he could also hear the slight snigger as she enjoyed what was going on. Unsure of what to do, Emilia's words ran through his head._

'_I hired you to kill her,' she had hissed to him a few weeks ago._

'_You had brought me here to help her,' he countered. 'The years ago when we first met you wanted me to help your daughter. Though she is dark, Miss Emilia, there is something about her. We need her; Faith is more important then you realize.'_

'_She is a murderer, Yeshua,' she told him. 'She has powers that can destroy a life in a mere second, these are powers not needed. She is not important.'_

_All he could do was sigh as he waited for the rest of her words. 'The next time she kills, I want her dead, even if it goes against God's will.'_

_Wrapping her blonde hair around his hands, he dug his fingers gently into her hair; his face lowered to hers as he began to speak to the murderer. "Why Faith? Please talk to me … tell me why …"_

"_He held the gun to me …" she replied, her voice painfully shaking. How he hated to see her in this state. "Daddy told me he was to kill me … because I'm so unhappy. I didn't want to die …"_

"_Hey, hey," he whispered, hearing her sobbing grow a little louder. "Shh, don't cry, come here …" he eased her hands from her face, so that he could see her damp, red face. It was painful to his heart to see her without the warm smile on her face he craved._

_She locked eyes with his; he noticed she didn't look away though he could tell she wanted to. His hand slid from her wrists, to her chin. Not knowing what he was doing, he flicked up her chin, bringing his face to hers. All Faith could do was stare in shock as he pushed his lips gently against hers. Still shocked by the events, her mind was unable to contemplate what was going on but she leaned into the kiss, letting their tongues dance together._

_Suddenly, once her mind finally figured out her actions, she pulled away from the kiss; her cheeks flushing as red as the blood on the floor. Yes, the kiss from the handsome white headed boy had provided her with a jolt of happiness, making her forget about the previous events, but a lunging feeling in her stomach was telling her it was wrong. She shook her head firmly as he stared at her with a confused expression._

"_No, nu-uh," she shook her head; his finger still on her cheek. "It's wrong … that's wrong… wrong, wrong, wrong …"_

"_Wrong?" he repeated, a little confused. He brushed away the remaining tears from her face, as she shook her head again._

"_Yeshua …" she whispered, not entirely understanding the reason why she felt it to be wrong. Just as she was about to speak again, trying to explain how she couldn't get her emotions out properly, his warm lips were against hers again, melting her into another kiss._

_

* * *

_

"These are the female quarters," chaos told her, pointing to a door Faith was just about to walk past. She stopped; his voice tearing her from one of her random memories. Her cheeks were flushed red as she tried to avoid eye contact with her new guardian. How confusing that little, simple memory had made everything. But as she shuffled from one foot to another, thinking of Gaignun she forced it from her mind. It was a kiss, from six years ago. It meant nothing, absolutely nothing and if it did, why would she be so head of heels in love with Gaignun Kukai?

"Faith," chaos repeated, noticing how she had drifted deep inside her own mind again. "You'll be staying in here, but my room is just next door, so you'll be okay." He smiled gently at her as he reached down, taking her wrist in his hand, speaking gently. "Come on, I'll take you inside."

With a push of a button, the door slid open, letting them into the sickeningly pink room; a colour in which Faith hated. Her eyes looked around the room, widening as she noticed an even more sickening sight. The pink headed Realian sat at the table, opposite the red headed Rubedo. In her hands were a few cards, her innocent face was screwed up in concentration as she played. In a sudden movement, she had jumped to her feet, knocking the rest of the cards onto the floor. She jumped up and down, applauding herself, shouting "I WIN!" at the top of her lungs; so loud even the people on the bottom floor in the lab could probably hear. Looking around, she cuts off, noticing Faith yet not properly recognizing her. The last time Faith had seen Momo she looked entirely Realian, with her silver hair and pure gold eyes, yet now her natural blood red and pink locks were on show and her eyes had that strange blue colour to them.

"Hello," she nods, her emotion suddenly changing from hyper to happy politeness. She looked over to chaos. "Hey chaos."

"Hello Momo," he smiled, letting go of Faith's wrist. "You remember Faith, don't you Momo?"

"F-Faith?" she said, obviously remembering her hitting her. "Yes, I do. You've … changed Faith."

"Yeah," Faith nodded, putting on her sweetest smile. Though she knew Momo was no longer her sister, she still couldn't help but feel hatred towards the precious Hundred Series. The hate she felt during the time of being a Kirshwasser was something she couldn't get rid of, though it was fainter then it had been before. At least now she could stand in the same room as her without having the urge to pummel her into the ground.

"Nice to see ya healthy and well, Faith," Rubedo grinned happily, winking at her. "You were so ill, didn't think you'd make it."

"Well, proved you wrong, didn't I?" she smiled proudly; happy she was in fact alive and hadn't been murdered by Albedo's hands.

Rubedo laughed. "So Gaignun actually _let you_ come to Old Miltia with us? Pretty shocking if you ask me! Didn't think he'd wanna let you out of his sight for a second."

"Yeah, I had to convince him a lot," she smiled. "But when he learned chaos would protect me, he was a little lenient and let me come."

She looked to the white headed boy, wondering whether it had been all good or not to agree to come with him. Learning that she had kissed him, that he had felt something for her … it was strange, odd; weird. Did it hurt chaos to see Faith with Gaignun all the time? To hear her speak happily about him and blush whenever his name was mentioned? If so, a strange feeling of guilt came into her heart and she couldn't help but be sorry.

Feeling her gaze on his face, he turned to her, warmly smiling. "Momo, Faith will be staying in here with you. Is that alright?"

"Yes," she smiled happily, excited about having a roommate. "Pick any bed you want, Faith!" she offered. "Apart from that one," the excited Realian pointed to the one closest to the door. "That ones mine."

Faith laughed a little. "Alright, then I'll have that one," she pointed to the one furthest away, in the private corner. A perfect place for her; privacy. Happy with this, Momo nodded, bouncing to the cards she had dropped earlier onto the floor. Eagerly, she picked them up and put them on the table. She and Rubedo resumed their game of cards, offering for chaos and Faith to join in yet being put down on it.

"I had better go show Faith the rest of the Elsa," chaos explained. "Whilst we're travelling to Old Miltia."

He put his hand on the small of her back, leading her gently out of the room. She shivered at his touch, feeling nervous about being near him. She was torn between curiosity of knowing what chaos was thinking and not wanting to bring the subject up entirely. As he led her around the Elsa, pointing out the Droids, telling her their names (which she was sure she was going to forget), she was once again plunged into a distant memory.

* * *

_Morning came crisp through the slightly parted curtains of fifteen year old Faith's room. The world was engulfed in a calming silence as she laid there, her body intertwined with Yeshua's, and her head leaned on his rising and falling chest. Her mind that had once been tortured and twisted by the urge of a blood stained corpse the previous night had dyed down, leaving her mind united with Yeshua's for the feeling of calamity. What she had done, what they had done would have been wrong in her mothers eyes, yet as she lay with her bare body being held by her sleeping companion, who too was wearing no clothing, she couldn't care less. The overwhelming calmness of her maddened state dying down thanks to him was so wonderful. Gently, her eyes shut again; her lashes brushed against his dark skin as her lids shut. She sighed contently, snuggling closer to the boy who was now just a year older then her, and who would soon be a year younger then her._

_Hovering just on the edge of consciousness, Yeshua pulled Faith closer to him, sighing contently. Grinning from the attention, she re-opened her eyes, reaching up to lick Yeshua's ear. Switching from tongue to teeth, she nipped at his skin; her teeth pushed down harder and harder with each bite until she finally drew blood also drawing an airy gasp from Yeshua, waking him up properly._

_As she licked the blood from his lobe, he winced a little from the stinging pain. Evidently, no matter what he did or how calm he got her there was always a part of her, albeit tiny part, that urged for blood. His cool, for once un-gloved, hands ran down her bare skin._

_Pulling away from his ear, she looked deep into his eyes, still a little confused from the weak emotions of what she believed to be love in her heart. What was it she felt for this person who was touching her so intimately? Who had touched her and desired her?_

"_Yeshua …" she breathlessly whispered, moving closer to him; her eyes shutting._

_

* * *

_

She was suddenly pulled back from the memory, feeling her body being pushed into a cold wall. The push was delicate; almost a kind move. Her eyes widened as she came face to face with chaos, a feeling to push him far away came into her mind yet she was too frozen to do so. Shocked from his move, all she could do was stare like a doll at him as he brought his face an inch from hers. She prayed he wouldn't kiss her, God she didn't want that. If she had felt something for chaos it wasn't there anymore – she loved Gaignun, Gaignun, Gaignun.

As she stood there she suddenly wished she was in Gaignun's arms, rather then inches away from chaos' face.

"You remember, don't you?" he asked her, his voice barely a whisper as he spoke. She managed to nod her head.

"Chaos, let me go," she firmly said, feeling his hands pushing against her arms gently. "I love Gaignun. When I did … whatever I did to you that was before. My old life. I don't love you, I love him."

She could clearly see the faint glisten of hurt in his eyes as he stared into hers, not letting her break the lock of eye contact. She wasn't sure why, maybe it was because of secret stubbornness in his nature, but he pushed his lips against hers, slipping his tongue into her mouth. Her mind reeled with Gaignun as she suddenly bit down on his tongue; her teeth digging deep into the boys tongue. She knew it was over done and there was a part of her that hated her for doing that, but she didn't care. It got him away from her, but he left enough blood in her mouth for it to begin to run down her throat. As the metallic tasting liquid stayed in her mouth, a devious grin made its way on her face. She swirled the liquid around in her mouth, savouring the beautiful substance she had been denied to taste for such a long time.

Looking up to chaos, who had taken a few steps back, she watched as he wiped the blood from his lip, knowing his tongue was still bleeding. She swallowed the blood in her mouth before sniggering uncontrollably; soon letting it turn into a laugh. "I love the taste of your blood, Yeshua," she licked her lips. "May I try more?"

The darkened look in her eyes was something he couldn't help but be a little fearful of. Numb with horror, all he could do was stare at the darkened Faith; staring at her gold and blue eyes; the ice blue brighter then it had been before, thus signalling the mental stability of her at that moment in time. The horrible taste of his blood in his mouth was something he wanted to spit out, yet he was too far away from the bathroom and Faith's gaze was holding him still, unable to let him speak.

_('your little chaos is an impudent snob,')_ Faith sent the mental message to Gaignun as she suddenly moved foreword, slamming chaos into the wall. She pushed her tongue into his mouth, not kissing him as such but getting all the blood from him. Once she was happy with the metallic life substance she had got from him, she pulled away; laughing at his shocked expression.

"Faith, calm down," he whispered, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

"Calm down?!" she cried. "How am I supposed to do that?! I want your blood chaos, but I don't want it," she shook her head, grabbing her hair with her hands. "I'm confused. There are too many emotions inside of me … Maybe father was right. Maybe it would have been better if he killed me."

"Don't talk like that," chaos said, his tongue stinging him. "I'm … I'm so sorry I kissed you … I should not have done that … it was wrong …"

She turned her head like a stubborn child, feeling the sadistic side calm down again.

_('Faith, what are you talking about?')_ Gaignun finally replied, his voice drenched in concern.

She paused, staring down at the floor. A little smile appeared on her face as she heard his voice; her heart beat calming down. ('_Never mind, honey. We just had an argument … you know I love you, don't you?')_

('_I know. And I love you too, more then you could ever imagine. I love you more then life itself,')_ his mental words caused the smile to widen as she was overwhelmed with happiness; something much stronger then she ever felt in her younger years with chaos.

"He calms you down, doesn't he?" chaos smiled, knowing they were passing mental messages.

"Yes," she nodded. "More then you could ever imagine."

* * *

Faith sat down on the ledge by chaos's station, her feet scraping gently on the floor as she looked out of the giant glass window; her mind excited yet bored at the same time. She loved the views of deep space, yet she hated how long it would always take to get to places without anything interesting happening. But just as she was going to state how bored she was, she was cut off by chaos.

"Captain!" he called. "We've got signal of KOS-MOS out here, nearby."

"KOS-MOS?" he repeated in his usual rough voice. "Well then let's go fetch her. Little Master!!"

In an instant, Rubedo had come to the bridge, hearing the voice of Captain Mathews on the intercom. With a look of irritation of his voice, he stormed to Captain Mathews. "What?" he almost whined like a child. "This had better be important; I was close to winning against Momo this time too."

"KOS-MOS is in the area," he told him. "Probably with your friend Shion too."

"Really?" he gasped. "Well, that's great. We gonna go get them or not?"

Within a few moments, Tony had taken them to the location of KOS-MOS. With her were Shion, a woman Faith had met twice and rarely spoken to, and a nervous man named Allen. The way he acted, how nervous and shy he was all the time caused Faith to laugh a him a few times, luckily she managed to stay hidden from it by covering her mouth and turning her head around.

Once they learned the trio were too headed towards Old Miltia, they joined the crew. Heading there, they came across the problem of the black holes. Sighing deeply, Faith leaned back on the terminal chaos worked on, sitting on the cold metal as she glanced around at everyone, wondering whether there would be a "detour" like mentioned.

"Actually there is a detour," Momo finally piped up; her voice shocking Faith's ears. Once she had explained the plans, where the detour was and how to get through the black wholes, Tony headed in the direction Momo had told. Faith stared at the Realian, feeling distain towards how clever she was and a cruel shock that she had managed to figure that out with her mind. As she stared, completely absorbed in her own mind, she was finally pulled away by Rubedo speaking.

"They're gating out here?!" he gasped.

Faith swiftly turned her head to the window, looking at space. In a few seconds a large ship had gated out in front of them, much larger then the Elsa itself; cutting them off their path entirely. Faith gasped, her eyes wide as she stared at it; completely taken back and unsure of what they would do. She heard the loud curse of Rubedo but missed what Captain Mathews had said. She was pulled back into the conversation when she heard Rubedo speak.

"Yeah, yeah …" he said; his voice determined. "That's if we can get inside that is."

"We're going in that?!" Faith gasped, standing to her feet, to stare at, who she thought was mad, Rubedo.

"It won't be hard," Rubedo grinned as Tony began to quickly move the Elsa towards the ship in front of them, not frightened of the shootings aimed to them, though Faith's heart was pounding faster against her chest then it ever had done before.

As the Elsa landed painfully on the Ship, it tilted foreword, sending everyone inside flying towards the window. Faith clutched the terminal, chaos' hand firmly wrapped around her waist as she kept her grip, trying not to fall. Finally, the ship crashed back down to level, leaving Faith to stand breathlessly there, chaos's arm still around her shaking body. Her heart pounded fiercely against her chest; her eyes widened as she stared. Rubedo patted her back playfully.

"Welcome to the Elsa, Faith," he grinned teasingly. "Bet ya never expected something like this, did ya?"

'_Faith, are you okay?'_ Gaignun mentally asked her. ('_I picked up on some distress.')_

"Oh just great," she rolled her eyes, speaking as she mentally connected with Gaignun. "Yeah, we're taking a little "detour" and because of a little interruption, he has a crazy plan to get us all killed."

Rubedo laughed a little at Faith. "Aww come on, don't get like that."

('_He's so reckless …')_ Gaignun sighed deeply.

"Come on, we're going in the E.S machines," he said, rounding everyone up. "Faith you can go in the Asher with chaos if you want. I'll go with Momo and Ziggy; KOS-MOS and Shion can go together with Jin. That alright with everyone?"

When all they could do was to nod, Faith reluctantly followed chaos to the hanger, where she boarded the E.S Asher; sitting on the seat above him, having more experience with E.S machines when she had time with Albedo. She carefully ran over the controls, grinning when she had figured out what to do in a matter of moments. With excitement plastered on her face, forgetting about the dangerous mission and the fact she was sharing an E.S with chaos, she led the E.S out of the Elsa. With one look at their surroundings, she gasped.

"Wow! It's so cool," she grinned happily, wanting to bounce up and down like Momo had done earlier. "Look at the black holes, chaos!"

She pointed to the two large black holes visible from where they stood on the Stronghold. The beautiful colours of black and purple mingled together in such a beautiful way, lighting up the sky was so eerily morbid yet beautiful at the same time. Sure they could kill someone in an instant, absorbed and drag in virtually anything they wanted to; they were still beautiful to Faith's eyes. The other two E.S Machines, the Dinah and Zebulun, were getting ahead quickly. Chaos looked up to Faith.

"Come on, otherwise we'll fall behind," he told her. "Do you know how to Pilot this? Do you want me to do it?"

"I know how to do it," she said. "I'm not dumb, chaos."

She made the E.S moved left, rather then foreword like she wanted. Screwing up her face in determination like Momo had done, she concentrated on getting the machine to move foreword. The controls felt almost slippery under her fingers and she struggled to control it, though a few minutes ago she had been so sure of herself. After long minutes, so long the other two machines had to stop to wait for the Asher, she managed to get it to move foreword, albeit in a wonky line. The once elegant looking machine was completely graceless in its moves, thanks to Faith who was glaring at the controls, hearing Rubedo's laughter on the speakers.

"I hope you know how to fight, Faith," he teased.

"Shut up, Rubedo," she glared. She lifted her hand up in the air, not realizing the E.S did the same as her. Lowering her hand, she put it back on the controls, looking at the surprisingly patient chaos. She smiled sheepishly, muttering a small apology before making the machine awkwardly run foreword; another laugh came from Rubedo's E.S.

"Faith, watch out," chaos said, his voice a little panicked yet not rose; as calm as it always was. She turned her head, making the head of the Asher turn too. Her eyes widened as she came face to face with another machine; a horrible green colour.

"Hey!" she glared at the machine as it shot at the E.S, damaging it slightly. She turned fully around to the enemy, making the Asher lift its arms and shoot at it. With a perfect aim, a large bullet hit the machine and she applauded herself, grinning widely. Not getting too involved with her success, she shot again, swiftly avoiding a hit from the machine. When the machine came up to the Asher to hit it with its bare arms, she moved to the left again, just about missing the hit, and then hit the Machine with the Asher. Once it had been defeat, she punched the air, the Asher also doing so.

"Hell yeah!" she grinned; her remarks reminding chaos slightly of Rubedo. Once she had done celebrating, she followed the other two E.S machines, a few yard behind them; still unable to properly control the machine. "This is going to be fun …" she smiled.


	24. Bittersweet Melody

**|| Chapter [Twenty-Four] ||**

**Bittersweet Melody**

Chaos let his strangely burning, serene aquamarine eyes drift up to the girl sitting just above, slightly to the side of him. With her face screwed up in concentration as she messily drove the Asher to their destination point, he couldn't pull himself away. Her eyes glistened in the light; the gold and the blue sharp against each other in her gems; the cold ever so slightly brighter then the other shade. Her face was beautiful porcelain, just like he had left it on the last day of knowing her; before the transformation of her becoming a Kirshwasser. Grazing his eyes down to her arms; the red sleeves having been rolled up in an attempt for her to cool down her skin; he couldn't believe how naïve he had been. During the time together he should have been more suspicious of Albedo, though at that time he had no idea who the man was. He wished he had known, so that his attempt to give the girl a normal life hadn't been in vain. Her olive skin was shattered in painful scars, going across her wrists in deep marks, across her fingers and her bones and skin were still deep in the shade of purple from last weeks beating.

It dawned on him how much had been plummeted on her; how much her life had truly changed. Gaignun was the first person to have treated her kindly in her eyes. The emotions of past memories weren't as strong as the present ones she had; he wouldn't be surprised if she truly couldn't remember how much he had cared for her; how his caring had edged on the way of love.

She had grown, whilst he hadn't. Younger then he, she still looked older but he didn't care; he had enjoyed watching the eleven year old grow up into a beautiful young woman; his feelings for her developing just as quickly as her body. As he recalled their time together, he couldn't help but let his cheeks burned brightly, as if they had been set aflame. It hadn't been perfect yet it hadn't been horrible either.

The memories were like a bittersweet song in his head, tuning in and out; something he could remember for the rest of his life perfectly; his bittersweet memories.

* * *

"_Yeshua … would you turn around please?" she asked him always, as she began to get out of the bed, grabbing the white blanket beside the table to wrap her body in. He blinked at her with slightly confused, sleepy eyes. After the pause of staring at her, he finally nodded, turning his head to the side to face the curtained window. Though it was morning, it was still dark out with the fierce pattering of the rain against the window and the howling of the wind. He heard the shuffling of cloths behind him as she changed, not letting his eyes look at her, which he had found strange. Just as he snuggled deep into the sheets, letting the warm softness over take his skin, he felt her body leaning against his gently; her lips pecked his cheek slightly before she stood back up to her feet._

_Sighing deeply, she ran her fingers through her slightly blood stained blonde hair. "Mother will be angry … Gabriel will find me repulsive …" she whispered so lightly it was amazing Yeshua was able to hear her morbid words._

"_And do you believe them?" he gently asked, moving to his other side. He pushed himself to sit up properly, the cold air of the room bit at his bare chest and arms, making him shiver furiously. Noticing the shiver, she moved to the heater, tapping a touch screen before heat began to emit from the metal, soon warming the room up to a toasty heat._

"_I'm …" she paused a little, looking around her room. She began to pick up things off the floor, randomly to keep her mind busy. "Scared."_

"_Scared?" he repeated, a little saddened at her emotion. He tucked some of his messy locks behind his ear, before continuing. "There is nothing to be frightened of."_

"_That's what you think," she muttered. "They love you, Yeshua. You're perfect; hell your name even means God in another language but me …" she sighed deeply, holding back a tear. "The only way I can stop them thinking of me in such a foul way … is murdering them …"_

"_No, Faith!" he could barely contain his shock as her words quickly sunk into his mind. "You can't do that. Don't do that!"_

_He darted to his feet as the murderous girl headed for her bedroom door; the glisten in her eyes he could read o-so well. Pulling on a pair of underwear quickly, he heard her push open her bedroom door, skirting quickly out into the darkened hallway. He raced to her in a panic, his feet gently patting against the floorboards, carrying his light weight gently as he tried to stay in his usually calmed way._

"_Faith, stop it," he begged in his quietest voice as not to wake the others residing in the home. The only person that would be awake would be Damion, and Yeshua didn't wish to attract his attention._

"_I want to hear her cry out," she dementedly hissed back, turning around for him to see her terrifying face; the innocence and joy once had disappeared without a drop; the darkness drenching her. She sniggered quickly, watching Yeshua. "Do you still like me?" She grinned menacingly, taking a step foreword to him. The teenager placed a hand on his neck, her nail touching his torn lobe gently; feeling the scab on his skin. "Do you still want to fuck me? That's all you want, isn't it, Yeshua? You don't care about me; you just want something to play with. Hell, with all the time you've spent in such a melancholic home you expected something good, huh?"_

"_That … that isn't true …" he whispered, hardly able to find his voice in the fear and shock she was coating him with. "I wanted … I wanted to show you how much I cared for you, how you can feel joy in a different way. I wanted us to … connect in such a way …"_

"_Connect?" she spat the words, laughing a little. "You don't do it for __**us**__ you do it for __**you**__ to prove there is happiness and pleasure in the world. It's getting to you, isn't it? All the darkness, all the dismalness."_

_Met with no answer, she grinned menacingly again. "Well … there is nothing apart from pain in the world …" she tightened her grip around his neck, not caring for the fact if he wished he could send her flying against the wall. As a matter of fact, she did that to him, albeit more weakly. With a strong push of her hand, she had knocked the older boy into the wall to the left of her; his head banging against the cold wall. Her fingers released his neck as she pushed him; a little whimper left his lips as he tried to stay silent, though the bang was something he couldn't control. The impact had caused him to scrunch to the floor; his eyes screwed shut as he winced in the throbbing pain that was shooting from his head down to his shoulders. Moving his cold hand to his neck, he rubbed the tender spot, groaning a little as he managed to re-open his eyes._

_Standing exactly where she had done before, Faith was staring down at him. Her face had relaxed from the maddened state it had before, turning to an emotionless doll. Lips slightly parted, her breathing was gentle, her breathes slower then normal and her blinking rare. She was stunned and from her expression it looked as if she was unsure of her moves that she had done. Moving her fingers, she looked like she was trying to get her blood pumping around her body again; he was unable to take his eyes off her as he stared curiously. The urge to find out what went on in her mind grew at that point. _

_Staring at each other they hadn't noticed the opening of the door behind where Faith stood. It was only when Gabriel's arms wrung around her body, and her sudden yelling for him to get off her Yeshua finally registered what was going on. He tried to stand to help her as she fought against her brother, her fighting much weaker then his. She pushed and kicked, and it was surprising to Yeshua she hadn't used her powers then and there to get his strong grasp off her._

_She screamed loudly as he dug his nails into her. "Get off me, get off me!! What the hell are you doing?!"_

"_He's dead on the floor!!" Gabriel screamed louder then her, making her jump skittishly. For a split second Faith thought he was speaking of Yeshua, who was obviously not dead but then he spoke again. "Outside! Dangling from the roof! Disgusting, it's a messed up sight you little bitch!!"_

_

* * *

_

When the memory passed with no answer about the person "dangling from the roof", he looked back at the nineteen year old Faith who was still concentrating on controlling the Asher in such a way chaos couldn't help but wonder if she would hear him after speaking. "Faith … do you remember the morning you …" he wondered how to word his sentence, not wanting to bring up pungent memories for her. "… When you wanted to get dressed without me looking? It was a cold winter's morning and raining badly… I think you were fifteen years …"

Her lips were still sealed as he finished his sentence. His gaze went back up to her; the concentration on her face had weakened, and even her fingers seemed to look almost limp as they tapped the touch screen, moving the Asher far behind the other two E.S machines. Knowing she had acknowledged his sentence, all he could do was sit and patiently wait, hoping she would provide him with a good, detailed answer rather then a shrugged off one. Well, he hoped she would remember but he was sure she did, or she soon would. All her memories were slowly but surely seeping back into her mind, some of them more random then others due to the fact of missing out a huge bridge between them.

Eventually, she sighed deeply, nodding gently. "Yes … I do remember …" she spoke with such a dry, delicate voice he wondered how much she could be breaking on the inside. It killed him to be believing she would be in such pain, but all he could do was try to help her in anyway he could, though it was getting hard for him to do so.

Finally, he tore his eyes away from her, quickly glancing at the screen to see the others were much further ahead. He didn't wish to rush her so he kept his mouth shut as she slowly led the Asher into the almost dome shaped walk area. Biting her lip, she parted her lips again, speaking. "Why do you wish to know or not?" she asked, obviously remembering the complex fact they had slept together. She took her fingers off the controls, winding them with each other.

"I'm not going to talk about that," chaos promised her, knowing how awkward it would be. "But … I didn't … I didn't go all the way with you just so I could feel … I wanted you to feel …"

She bit her lip, shutting her eyes gently. _'Don't say it, don't say it … don't say it …'_ she pleaded in her mind, unsure of how she would take the words. Even then she couldn't remember how she felt towards the boy properly, what with being harsh with him at one point then loving a few minutes later. But all she knew was that she loved Gaignun; the only person in the world she hadn't been emotional with. He was the only person that could keep her emotions in check; he was the only person that made her heart pound faster then ever and best of all, he was the only person she wanted to spend her life with.

"_Faith Kukai sounds like a beautiful name …"_

"I care for you deeply Faith …" her heart pounded painfully. "Faith I-"

_("Get out of there!!"_) Gaignun's voice suddenly shot through her mind, making her eyes widen in shock as she drew in an airy gasp. The reaction to that made chaos abruptly stop speaking; his eyes widened as he looked to the stiffened Faith.

"Gaignun?" she whispered, her voice trembling. "What are you talking about?"

("_Ma poupee … Gaignun left you all alone …?"_) the eerie voice of Albedo slithered through her mind, making her skin shiver as she froze on the spot, unable to breathe, blink or move. She held her breathe, letting Albedo speak. (_"Shocking really, is it not? How are you?"_)

("_Leave me alone,_") Faith hissed through her mind, hating how suddenly he was able to open a mental link with her. ("_Leave me be, get out of my head!_")

("_That's rude of you, isn't it poupee?"_) his menacing laugh ran through her head. ("_We're so alike, me and you. Why do you think I took such a shine to you? I'm so surprised you're alive by the way … I hadn't expected that … we still have a deal, you know? Only one of you can live."_)

(_"Shut up! We're both going to live without you,_") she replied.

("_You're going to kill him yourself …_") he horribly teased. ("_You can't contain it anymore. You want to kill my brother; you're thriving for his death. If you want to, I'll let you kill him yourself …_")

("_SHUT UP!!!_") she screamed through her mind; her hands clenched into tight fists.

("_Murderer left all alone … I wonder how Gaignun will feel once he gets killed by his wife to be …"_) he began to laugh again. ("_Did you enjoy your dream?_")

("_SHUT UP and die,_") she hissed deeply, her hands beginning to tremble. She hated remembering the dream; she hated letting it run through her mind. When she had happy kissed him, loving him only to shoot him in the head. Horrible, horrible, horrible …

(_"Murderer, murderer with a silver gun …"_) he happily sung.

(_"LEAVE US ALONE AND DIE!!"_) she screamed again. In an instant, she felt the mental link breaking, beginning to feel the link rise and fall from the amount of times Gaignun had spoken to her via it. She was finally left alone in her mind as she sat back on her chair, breathing deeply to get rid of the tension within her body. Their little "conversation" had angered her move then anything and o how she wished her hands were wrung around his throat …

Though apart of her loved the menacing part of Albedo, another part of her truly _hated_ how damn irritating he could be most of the time.

As she sat there, her breathing edging to a pant, she thought about the panic in Gaignun's words. He was surely not just warning her about the conversation she would be forced to endure with her happy old Master; there was something else going on in the shadows, whispering in the dark that sent shivers down her spine. Chaos sat, staying silent so she could have a few moments to conduct herself and calm down. He wasn't too sure how helpful his input would be and he knew the girl well enough to know it was always best to leave her to cool herself down.

"Bastard …" she whispered, running her hand through her hair. Shutting her eyes gently, she drained out the gentle beeping of the Asher that had only just strangely begun.

After a few long minutes of peacefully sitting there, calming herself down, chaos' voice rang through her ears. "It's … Albedo's … Albedo's E.S …"

Without looking out the window, or checking the Asher's status all she did was look down to chaos, laughing a little at his words. "That's silly!" she giggled. "Albedo isn't here. He wouldn't be here. Impossible, absolutely impossible."

"Nothing is impossible, ma poupee," the darkened voice came in loud and clear through the speakers, making her eyes shoot out the window. They widened at the sight of the E.S machine she had grown up with during her Kirshwasser years; the machine she had piloted millions of times, and co-piloted even more times then that. The beautiful machinery that was once gorgeous to her eyes had an eerie look to it now as it reminded her of her previous days.

"God no …" she whispered, moving her stiffening hands as best she could onto the controls by her wrists.

"I've wanted you back, poupee," he told her through the speakers. "Now, lower your defences and let me take you, or else I shall lower them for you."

Fumbling around the touch screen, she was almost numb in horror as she stared at the E.S, trying to gain courage to say something to the white headed man she feared so greatly. But then, with a change of heart and a strong look of determination on her face, she reached up to a lever above her head, changing the E.S Asher into "Flight Mode".

"Hold on tight," Faith warned chaos as she tapped a few more buttons. "I want you to take control of weaponry. Shoot when needed, don't shoot too much," she pushed a few more buttons; her body suddenly feeling weird as the E.S began to hover above the ground, a loud humming even they could hear from the inside came from it as it got used to the 'Flight Mode' Faith had switched it to. "Shoot little and he'll get bored."

The menacing laugh filled both their ears from Albedo. "I hoped we'd have to do it this way …"

Glancing back down to chaos she smiled as warmly as she could at the boy. "If worse comes to worse, take over the Asher. Tell Rubedo I'll be back. Please … don't tell Gaignun …"

* * *

"_I want to live here!" the excited little Faith happily said as she ran from one store to another; her lips curled into a large smile. Damion smiled at the girl, his hand on the small of her back as he led the fourteen year old around. Never had the girl bounced with so much happy energy before; Damion's plans had been right – taking the girl out for a short break was doing a world of good for her as he face was brightly lit up._

"_Maybe one day you can," he told her, making the smile on her face widen. "When you're older you can live wherever you want to Faith."_

"_Really?" she gasped, not believing Damion's words. He nodded, chuckling a little._

"_Really, really," he promised her, nodding again eagerly. "Come on, we had better go find your mother, Mister Gabriel and Mister Yeshua."_

"_I wouldn't be surprised if they were lost," she grinned, her eyes widening as they walked past a Bakery called "Smile Bakery". The fresh scent of the cakes filled her nose, making her eyes glow. She was overwhelmed with excitement from being in such a new place; it was wonderful to Damion to see the young teenager so happy._

"_We can go there later," he promised, pushing her ahead a little. As she was distracted again by another wonderful thing, her eyes looked up to the black sky, dotted in stars despite the cover it was daytime in the city. Excitedly, she bounced from one foot to another, pointing up at the sky._

"_Look Damion, stars!" Faith happily cried. "How does it work? Why does it look like daytime though the stars are out?"_

"_Well …" he bent down to her level, pointing the large, bright panels around the edge of the dome. "You see those panels? They change throughout the day, reflecting different lights to illustrate different times in the day."_

"_I see …" she whispered, completely absorbed by Damion's explanation and the beauty of the glowing stars against the darkness Through the corner of her eye, she saw something else, making her else widen again. "Look, Damion, look!"_

_Like an excited child high on sugar, she ran ahead. Just about to pull her back, he missed her body completely as she ran ahead. Soon her little run was stopped as she crashed her body into someone else, making her whimper slightly; barely a few years in front of Damion. Damion had raced over to the dazed Faith's side, taking her a few steps back from the apologetic stranger._

"_I do apologize, ma'am," he politely said, obviously embarrassed by their collide. As Damion's eyes met with the strangers emerald ones, they widened as he quickly bowed his head._

"_I'm sorry for her ignorance, Master Gaignun," he solemnly said, bowing a second time. "Faith, apologize to the man."_

"_What?" she glared at Damion, not caring how rude she could have looked at that moment in time. The blonde turned to her carer, not really understanding who "Master Gaignun" was. "I'm not ignorant. How on earth am I ignorant?"_

"_For crashing into Master Gaignun," Damion said, daring not to raise his voice to the girl. "Please apologise Miss Ackermann."_

_Sighing deeply, she turned to the man, bowing her head exactly like Damion had done, yet half as energetically as him. "My apologizes, Gaignun. But I do not apologize for me so called "ignorance". I apologize for not having watched where I was going and crashing into you. My "ignorance" has nothing to do with such a situation."_

_Completely taken back by her words, but not at all offended, he took a few moments to finally nod; the twenty-one year old looking at Damion. He held out his hand to the other black headed man, who took his time to shake it; more then privileged to be shaking hands with Gaignun Kukai; the leader of the Kukai Foundation on which they stood. And to think, just five years later and the little blonde headed girl who he was sure had made a bad impression on the man would be dating her, being told how beautiful her name would be with "Kukai" finishing it._

"_I apologize again for knocking into your daughter," he said. "I believe we were both at fault for such a thing to occur."_

"_Please don't apologise, Master Gaignun," Damion said. "She cannot keep her energy under control. It's been some time since we've travelled so far from home."_

"_Ah, I see," he nodded; his hand back to his side. Faith, not entirely interested in the conversation, turned her head to the city; keeping her eye out for her red headed mother, brown headed brother and white headed … whatever he was, Yeshua. "Where might you be travelling from?"_

"_Second Miltia, Sir," Damion replied._

"_Are you travelling with anyone else but your daughter?" Gaignun politely asked._

"_She's not my daughter, Sir," Damion corrected. "I am the family Butler, if you will, though I treat her as a daughter all the same."_

_Just as Gaignun was about to reply to Damion's statement, he saw in the corner of his eye the young teenager grow excited; jumping up and down, her hand waving ecstatically in the air. In answer to his question, he saw the approach of the three people; Gabriel, Emilia and Yeshua. As the came to Damion and Faith, they seemed rather shocked to notice the handsome, suited man speaking to them. Gaignun greeted them with a smile as they joined with Damion and Faith. With a wide smile to Yeshua, she let him hook arms with him as he handed her a small pink bag, with a little gift inside. Emilia shook hands with Gaignun quite eagerly, more then nervous with a strange twist of joy to meet the leader._

"_It's such a pleasure to meet you," she smiled widely, brushing some of her red locks behind her ear. "My name is Emilia Clementine; this is my son Gabriel and our family friend, Yeshua."_

_Gaignun greeted them both with a firm hand shake, smiling widely. "I was just speaking to Damion, having accidentally knocked into your daughter I believe."_

"_Yes, this is Faith," Emilia told him, nudging her daughter foreword a few steps so that Yeshua's arm would fall off her body. With a stern look, telling them not to get close again, she looked back at Gaignun; her face soft again._

"_Faith …" he smiled. "Beautiful name, if I may. It's lovely to see someone with such an old fashioned name like your own."_

_Hearing his words in tone like that, she looked up at him. He was smiling at her; his emerald eyes gazing across her face as he spoke to her. "How old are you Faith?"_

"_Fourteen," she answered, happy with the kind attention for once. She rarely socialized with anyone outside her family, and even then it would be with Priests trying to "cleanse" her or spite her with cruel words of how her mother should kill her. "I'm going to be fifteen next week."_

"_Really?" he smiled kindly. "Well, I should take you out for a treat, don't you think? As an apology and for the fact your birthday is just around the corner," his eyes looked from the slightly stunned Faith to her mother, who was a little confused at the situation. For starters she was surprised Faith hadn't snapped at the leader for crashing into her, and for him actually inviting to take her daughter to a place._

"_Is this alright with you, Miss Clementine?" he asked her. "I'll take her simply to get some ice cream."_

"_Ah …" she was barely able to find her voice. "Are you sure, Master Gaignun?"_

"_Yes," he nodded, holding his arm out to Faith. "Come along Faith, we can meet back up with your family in half an hour, unless you wish for them to join us."_

_Faith looked back at her family, and then to her mother who also wished for her to be dead; she knew it. Shaking her head, she wished not for them to ruin this little chance of her socializing with someone else outside the family, outside the churches and the few playgrounds she was allowed to go to. She waved goodbye to them, before taking Master Gaignun's outstretched arm. She was a little unsure of whether he was offering his hand or not to her, so she safety took his wrist; wrapping her fingers gently around the bone and skin, feeling the pulse of his blood pounding around his body on his vein. With her body trembling slightly, she walked with the leader of the Kukai Foundation, leaving her family behind; dazed and confused._

_

* * *

_

"Faith, shields are down. We're taking serious damage!" chaos informed her as she dodged one of Albedo's attacks. With her cheeks flushed red in determination, she shook her head, not wanting to give into Albedo's arms. God, she prayed she would be able to get away. With the brand new, fresh memory in her mind (that was for once a happy one) she wanted to run to Gaignun, explaining to him that she was the little girl he had brought ice cream for one day. If he was unable to remember, she would force him to with all her might, not giving up; she was excited with childish joy knowing she and Gaignun had a previous history. No wonder she had felt so calm with him during their first meeting and no wonder he had taken her under his wing; helping her with her cover up when Rubedo came into the room and she had over done on her emotions. Even if neither of them could remember, there was that strong bond and she had no idea how deep it was, not remembering all the memories, she knew it was deeper then the bond with her and chaos. Sure she and chaos had "done" more then she and Gaignun; they had known each other longer, but when they first met and Faith had no recollection of her memories and chaos didn't recognise her, there was no little link between them. It was as if they had met for the first time, unlike her and Gaignun.

"Where the hell is Rubedo?!" she hissed, moving to the side again as Albedo came lunging at her with the E.S. Sure she knew that machine like the back of her hand; all the moves, and even the favourites of Albedo, he was still as unpredictable as ever, making avoiding him extremely difficult for her. Each time she successfully dodged an attack she couldn't help but mentally applaud herself for her good work. "HA!" she yelled, almost defining chaos with her loud voice. She couldn't help but move her hand down to the control for the gun, quickly firing at Albedo's E.S; the silver bullets hitting and damaging him. "Perfect hit!"

Taking the hit unwell, Albedo shot to them again; his move hitting the Asher painfully hard, and again her heart sunk as she felt herself failing at trying to fight Albedo off.

* * *

"_Here you go," he offered, handing her the ice cream cone, filled with deliciously cold strawberry ice cream. She smiled gratefully as he took his own vanilla one, sitting down at the table opposite her. Happily, she licked at the sweet treat, savouring the taste on her tongue. She rarely had treats like that, living with her strict mother and never had she been given one by a complete stranger. Gaignun happily ate his ice cream at the same pace as her; obviously not having the treat often, just like her. She couldn't help but snigger slightly at the suited man who sat opposite her. Her little laugh gained his attention as he looked up at her curiously._

"_What is so funny?" he asked her, grinning. She found it strange the man was grinning at her, his eyes bright with content as he watched her eat the ice cream, wondering why she had sniggered only to suddenly stop just as quickly as she started._

"_Nothing," she replied quickly, taking a lick of her ice cream. She looked at him again, feeling a strange sense of calamity wash over her soul from his emerald gems. It was as if he was the cool breeze on an unbelievably hot day, gently cooling her down with a gentle brush at her skin but keeping her perfectly, almost refreshingly, warm at the same time._

"_Your name is Faith Ackermann then?" he asked her curiously, remembering her mother was called "Clementine" rather then "Ackermann"._

"_Yes Sir," she nodded. "Faith Ackermann. I'm named after my Grandmother's side of the family on my dad's side, if that makes any sense."_

"_Yes it does," he nodded. "Curious thing to do though."_

"_Yes sir," she nodded; beginning to bite at the cone; the ice cream almost gone. Gaignun, noticing her finishing off her ice cream at the same time as her stood to his feet quickly, beckoning her to stand to her own too._

_He held out his arm again, this time stretching out his fingers for her to hold onto his hand. She did what he wished, feeling a little nervous about holding his hand. "Come with me. Let me show you something."_

"_Won't mother be mad if we're late?" she asked as he led her down the street._

"_We won't be, I promise," he smiled gently at her._

_

* * *

_

The blood trickled quickly down her forehead, brushing against her skin as it was pumped from the deep wound in her flesh. She had the urge to brush it away, feeling it itching as it irritatingly moved, but she was unable to. Her entire body was immobilized as she lay or sat (she couldn't tell which); her sight an entire cloud of pure darkness. Even when she had her lids open a few moments ago, everything was pure black, though providing her with an ample amount of dizziness. The throbbing of her head grew stronger as she felt the disgusting pulse of her blood being pumped at the torn flesh; God how she despised that feeling. Granted, it had been quite a while since she felt it but she had hoped the last time she felt it was the last. It always made her feel sick to her stomach, and because of that feeling, the excruciating pain in her forehead and the dizziness all combined, she felt her stomach empty as she was sick: the horrible experience leaving a dreaded taste on her tongue.

As she lay, finally gaining a bit of control of her body, she whined, rolling to her other side, which was bruised and battered; making pain shoot up her body. She wished she was unconscious; usually an attack like that would leave her unconscious for a good few hours, but all it had done was make her forget the thing that had harmed her in such a way. Though her memories were a blur and her mind not working as well as it could do, her common sense was still there as she knew who had done the damage; none other then Albedo Piazzolla, the man who had once been her Master and if she couldn't escape another time, who would have that title again.

When the dark voice entered her ear, she was proved of her knowledge; it was Albedo. "Oh how disgusting Poupee, are you not unconscious yet? Surprising really … I thought you were weaker then that, I truly did …"

She wished to argue back, to tell him words stating she was the complete opposite but even in her mind she was unable to find out a sentence for her mouth to struggle to say. Finally, after a long time of being paralyzed in pain, her mind drifted into a deep, well earned slumber.

* * *

_Faith happily giggled as he pulled her up the scaffolding of the one empty building. It was one of the tallest ones and as she had stared at it from the view of the ground, it looked as if it was reaching for the stars above; greedily wanting to grab each and every one that rested in the cold black blanket of space. His grip was strong around her wrist as he helped her onto the building, letting her to sit on the roof with him. Once she was settled, sitting with her legs hanging off the edge; not frightened at all of falling and plummeting to her death, she looked up to the beautiful space, where Gaignun too was looking. After a few moments of silence, he pointed to the red ship; the Durandle._

"_That's the Durandle," he told her informatively. "Was that what you were looking at before we collided?"_

_Her cheeks burning from the memory she nodded. "Yes Sir. I apologise for that again. It just looked so amazing; I couldn't keep my eyes off it."_

"_I thought it was," he smiled. "I glanced at you once or twice whilst I was walking. You're a very energetic young girl. Haven't you seen space like this before?"_

"_No," she shook her head. "In Second Miltia the atmosphere is polluted with light from the city, so seeing the stars is quite rare, even in the country part where me, mother, Gabriel and Damion live."_

"_Yes, that is quite troublesome," he agreed with her. Going back to the Durandle subject, he explained to her. "It changes to a Sky Scraper. Hopefully you and your family will be staying long enough to witness that."_

"_I doubt we'll be staying much longer, Sir," she said, almost in a sad tone._

"_Oh? Why is that?" he curiously asked her. "Is your holiday over already?"_

"_No, Sir, it's just …" she turned her head to the side, looking down at the people below as they continued on with their normal lives. Never had it dawned on her how much she hated her life, how much she hated living in such darkness, but something deep in her told her she'd enjoy it again once back in her home (and of course it was right – without Gaignun around even the present Faith would find herself lost in her sadistic emotions). "My family wish not for me to socialize with people too much if it can be helped."_

"_Really?" he asked, moving a little to her. "That's quite strange. Do you care to tell me why? I can listen if you want me to."_

_Turning to him, her eyes widened in happiness and shock. Finally, after the long pause of staring at Gaignun, she shook her head. "No sir, I'm ever so sorry. But …" she smiled sheepishly. "The kindness of your words has not gone unnoticed. I shall remember them for the rest of my life, as weird as that sounds."_

**Comments – **And again in Albedo's hands, what's going to happen to Faith especially when she learns this exciting news about her and Gaignun? I'm so sorry if people don't like the curmmyness of my adding some Gaignun into her past, I just thought it would make sense [if you can't tell, this is going a little beyond my original plan for bitter sweet XD], as she and Gaignun create a bond literally from the moment they meet [him staying with her, nursing her wounds and taking good care of her] so I though it *hopefully* added up. Thank you guys so much for all your wonderful reviews you've given me. THIRTY FREAKIN EIGHT …

I'm amazed … Absolutely amazed. I can't thank ya'll enough 333 I hope you continue to enjoy, and that the crummyness of the chapters isn't getting to you.


	25. Whispers in the Night

**|| Chapter [Twenty-Five] ||**

**Whispers in the Night**

"Get off me!!" Faith screamed so loudly her throat felt like it was tearing from the overuse of her voice in such a way. She repeated her words, albeit a little weaker; her voice beginning to crack from how loudly she was screaming at the white headed man He hadn't taken her to the Plemora, luckily enough; hiding somewhere deep in the Ormus Stronghold and he even had the graciousness to not take her back to the room she had lived in for some time; the room of hell to her, where all her scars had been made and she had been broken into a thousand little pieces.

And she'd be dammed if she'd let that happen again.

His fingers dug painfully deep into her arms, trying to restrain her but she couldn't care less for the pain. She squirmed around like a worm, sometimes slipping from his grip but just as she managed to take a step foreword, he had wrapped himself around her again; creating a fight yet again. It had been going on for a good half an hour, her screaming and his yelling. Scratches were all up her skin, some on her face. Her hair was a mess and her cheeks were burning a dark shade of red; a sweat had appeared on her flesh as she continued to fight, not wanting to lose against him. Harming him with her powers would only result in more pain from him, which at that point in time wasn't a lot. Sure he was using his strength, but he wasn't harming her to the point she'd cry out. The worse he had done so far were the scratches on her skin, which were leaking only a little with her blood, whilst some weren't at all; they were just marks.

_("Dammit Albedo, what the hell are you doing to her?!!")_ the annoying yell of his raven headed brother ran through his head. Glaring angrily, irritated by the sudden appearance of Gaignun in his mind, he changed his plan of actions. As painfully as he could, he grabbed the girl from around her neck, making her finally squeal out in pain as he pressed as hard as he could. Taking his anger out on her, he threw her down to the ground, out of his way. She cried again as she was suddenly thrown to the ground, with nothing else to do but to accept whatever pain she was getting. The sudden change in his character scared the hell out of her and God knew what he'd do if she fought back with her powers. Getting him angrier would result in her death; she had to be careful with her steps.

Shaking from anger, Albedo groaned deeply as he moved away from the girl who was rubbing the bandage around her head; staring at him with fearful eyes. His fists were clenched as he felt his brother still in his mind, refusing to get out of it. How he wanted to harm Gaignun, or harm Faith in hopes of emotionally damaging his brother. After the long pause, he finally spoke to him in reply; speaking aloud as he did so.

"Ma poupee is fine Gaignun," Albedo lied; his voice a little tired from the fight. "Now, get out of my mind. It's rude to just drop in without a word."

("_Exactly what you had done by interrupting the mission with Jr. and not letting him know you were coming to get Faith,")_ Gaignun hissed. _("Which reminds me … how come you were so quiet on getting her without the others even noticing you?")_

"Practise, my dear brother," Albedo laughed. Eventually, the laugh drifted out as he felt a strange sensation come from his brother whilst he stayed in his mind. Eyebrows furrowed, he concentrated on the feeling of his brother. It was … weird to say the least; it didn't feel like it was the man he had known all his life in his mind, waiting for a reply. After a few seconds, Albedo spoke. "Nigredo?" he simply asked, curiosity in his tone that would be easy to pick up on, yet something not too surprising.

("_What? You have something more to say to me?_") Gaignun asked. Albedo was right, his tone was slightly different too; a strange edge to it. Albedo's joyful, purple, gems looked over to Faith who had pushed herself to sit up properly, feeling the blood stained tourniquet on her forehead. Her fingers felt the damp bandage as she looked back at Albedo with her strong, two toned eyes. With a look of pure determination on her face, she growled at Albedo.

"I'm going …" she fiercely glared. "I'm going _now_!"

"To your little Nigredo?" he taunted, holding back the laughter on the tip of his tongue. "Your darling Nigredo who will be exactly the same person as he was when you left him?"

Faith could only frown at his words, struggling from either her injuries or the strangeness of the words, to find her voice. Eventually, after the long struggle, she won and eventually a sentence left her throat. "What are you talking about?" she questioned, not understanding. "Gaignun will be the same man he was when I last spoke to him. He will still be the one that loves me …" a little evil glint flashed in her eyes. "Do you do this because you're jealous?"

"Come again, poupee," he grinned, interested in whatever her words were to be.

"Are you jealous the three gems have split up?" she asked, moving herself foreword and onto her knees; locking her eyes with his. For once she wasn't frightened to look into his murderous, mad eyes that showed everything but empathy and care.

And the only reason was the fact her ice blue was glowing just as furiously as ever; brighter then the golden shade.

"_What about you?"_

"_You do realize you're wasting a question asking that, right?"_

"_I know,"._

"_Gold or blue," she answered. "Depending on my mood."_

"Safire, amethyst, and emerald …" she smiled. "You're all precious gems, and being a child you thought you were to be together, no? But then when all the bad stuff happened, when Rubedo fell in love and you found out your powers … you all split up … but apart of you was happy the emerald wasn't claimed by someone …" she moaned a little as she pushed her dizzy body onto its feet. She rested her hand on the cold wall as she gained her balance before continuing. "Then when the emerald was claimed … by me … you got jealous …"

She looked back at him, met with an almost saddened glare. "You hated me, Albedo, but you always thought of me to be yours and you to be mine. A murderer doesn't attract a murderer, Albedo. You only grew curious of me, but we weren't destined."

"You're believing I love or loved you?" he laughed, finding the speech more amusing then anything else.

"No, not at all," she shook her head. When the blue dyed down, the gold seemed to be slightly brighter in a soft, warming way and she reached foreword, to put a hand on his shoulder. "Neither of us are dark, yet we are. We lost our minds at some stage … we still do … but that doesn't mean we deserve bad people …" she sighed a little. "I don't deserve to be with someone as cruel … as abusive as you and you don't deserve to be with someone as murderous as me." Again another sigh. "I never wanted this to be interpreted as love. People can make connections without such emotions. What I'm saying is … you're a gem … and you're going to be claimed by someone …"

She looked at his eyes, gleaming with something different that she couldn't make out. "I understand your grave diggings, Albedo. I understand why … why you treat and treated me so badly, along with the Kirshwasser's and Momo. For the part of you that's still a child, I don't blame you."

He wasn't able to think, he wasn't able to reply and the sudden rush of not being able to reply to her words or do anything sent anger to run through his body. In rage and in the only way to express himself that he knew, he slammed his hand into the girl again. She whimpered as she was crashed into the wall; another flush of blood ran into her throat as she was eloped in searing pain. Just as she hit the ground, her world faded into a slumber of darkness, where the next few minutes, hours, or maybe even days would merge into a horrible unconsciousness and pass her by.

* * *

The taste of blood was what she was awoken with first. Coughing a bit, she let all the blood leave her mouth but the metallic taste still resided there. Feeling groggy at first, she moaned as she slowly came to, feeling her body lying above something cold and hard. The pain of her head had dyed down to a dull sting; surprisingly there was no throb or ache as she lay there, collecting her mind. A sound, a beautifully gentle sound that was threatening to slow her back to sleep entered her ears, soothing her head. It sounded like the gentle wave of water, brushing against metal as it quietly and peacefully danced; letting the cool liquid travel slowly around. The fingers of her left hand could feel the push of water against her skin; the liquid cool against her clammy and hot flesh. Moaning a little, she managed to push herself into the real world as her eyes opened, blinking a few times before her brain could register an image of what was around her.

The room she was in, if that was what it could be called, was the largest thing she had ever seen in her entire life. There was a walkway, in the shape of a V from what her eyes could see, created souly from thick clear glass; fragile with every step. In the V was a separate pathway, leading to nothing else but the bottom of the diamond shape core that was levitated above the ground by strong pillars or something; she wasn't able to see properly from where she lay. Across from where she was, there rested a long elevator that would levitate the body up to the next stable place to walk. This one was a stunning shade of blue, whilst the one at the centre of the V was a beautiful bright coloured green. Turning her head, she was able to see another golden yellow one behind her, which reminded her of the setting sun she had seen at Gaignun's home. The soft light behind her was beautiful to her eyes, which were almost identical to the colour. Dragging her hand out of the water under her, she wiped it dry on her jeans, before weakly turning back to her side. She wanted, no she needed, to collect energy before making another move. The words "Ormus Stronghold Core" were printed on the metal, meaning Albedo had spared her life, but why?

Had it been the words she had said to him? No that couldn't possibly be it. As she dawdled on the thought, she realized how little her ramble had made sense. Though the man also made ramblings that you'd have to listen to carefully to understand, it would be more then surprising if he were to understand what she had said. It had surprised her, the meaning behind her words. She expected herself to be filled with pure anger towards the white head, but after thinking about it she felt sorrow and pity for him. She wished someone could claim him, the amethyst gem. She had chosen the amethyst because of his stunning purple gems, which she found herself not frightened of anymore. Yes, they had a link with their murderous and crazy ways, but they weren't destined not even to be good friends. _"A murderer only attracts a murderer to some extent. Eventually they will both become tiresome of each other, whilst trying to outsmart each other with funny murderous thoughts …"_ she groaned a little; her words no even making sense to her.

Lifting her head suddenly, she heard a large banging from the top of the core. Managing somehow, she had pushed herself to sit on the back of her legs that still rested on the floor as she stared up at the core. The pillars holding it together suddenly broke with themselves; a little light in the colour of purple came from the core for a split second before just as quickly disappearing. Before she was able to do anything, the diamond core had fallen with a defining and heart stopping crash to the water below it; just missing the walkway Faith sat on.

But as it crashed and the water sprayed everywhere, she had gotten covered in the horrible cool liquid. Furiously, she glared at the core. With the added weight of the water, she was sat in ten inches of water that went up to her waist. The water had soaked through the fabric of her cloths at an unbelievably fast pace, but although she was completely annoyed at the drench, she felt cool from the liquid. Thin strips of bloody water ran down her face as she looked up at the core.

What she saw coming from the entrance was so welcoming, so wonderful to her eyes. Not noticing her, Rubedo was the first to come out and race to the elevator, waiting for the others to join him. The others quickly followed, glancing down at the damage they had done, but none of them noticing the young nineteen year old girl sitting on the walkway, covered in the water. Until chaos came out; the last one. A look of pure worry and concern was on his face as came out, but the second he stepped foreword, his head suddenly snapped to where she sat; as if he was able to sense where she was.

Both of them froze for a split second until she stuck out her tongue playfully. "I'm going to kill you, chaos!!" she yelled as loud as she could up to him; her yell grabbing everyone else's attention at the same time. Rubedo's laughter could be heard through the large room, echoing down to her. She waved to them ecstatically, knowing she would be safe.

"There you are, Faith!" he yelled down to her, now running to the elevator. He was the first to float down to her in the yellow-tube shaped elevator. The water was beginning to drench his trousers, but he would be no where near as wet as she was.

Faith pushed her wet body to her feet. The water dripped from her; the extra weight making her feel a little bit heavy. When Rubedo was stood in front of her, the other were making their way down the elevator; Momo, surprisingly, giving her a gentle, kind and childishly happy smile that Faith eagerly returned.

"You got _drenched_!" Rubedo teased, not being able to contain his laughter. Faith returned it with a glare, before taking hold of his elbows.

"Wanna get drenched too?" she grinned, pulling him towards the edge of the walkway with stunning strength. His eyes widened as he fought against her, eventually getting her hands off him.

"That'd be cruel," he laughed.

Chaos was quick to her side, smiling gently at her; a look of relief on his face. "Hi …" he whispered, squeezing her arm gently with his gloved hand.

She couldn't help but smile at him. "Hey …" she whispered in a reply, looking at his astonishing eyes. Moving her hand up to his gloved one, she felt the fabric under her finger for a few moments; neither of them able to break the locked eye contact. Though it was strong like when she and Gaignun locked eyes, it didn't feel as … soft … as … right as it did then, but there was something there; something stopping her from looking away.

"Your head," chaos pointed out, taking his hands off her body and away from her fingers. "Are you okay? Shall I heal it for you?"

Looking at his hand, and then back to his caring face, she thought of Gaignun. She'd much rather him take care of her wounds, though she didn't want Gaignun to see what his brother had done to her again; especially after last time when the white headed man had almost killed her. God … Gaignun was going to kill Faith himself if he ever were to find out Faith had told Albedo she could understand his cruel actions. Eventually, she shook her head, letting her wet hair move across her face.

"No," she replied, letting him brush the hair away. "I'm going to let Gaignun heal me …" she could see the sharp hint of pain that shot through his eyes, though it lasted a split second. His hand froze as a strange tremble came across him; his heart skipped a beat in the bad way. Quickly, he put the hand down to his side, obviously hurt to no one but Faith's eyes.

"Hey!!" Rubedo suddenly yelled, coming out from the bottom of the Core. The pair of them hadn't noticed him, and the other quickly run into the Core, destroying the ship. "We got 30 minutes to get out of here! Come on, let's go!"

* * *

_Gaignun turned to the younger Faith as he began to climb down the scaffolding; a full fifteen minutes late for meeting back up with her family. Neither of them had noticed the time, and Gaignun wasn't aware of how late they were until he heard the chimes of the bell, signifying the time four o'clock. Unaware of the time before, Faith wasn't entirely worried, which was complete opposite to Gaignun. Trying not to worry her, he casually told her it was time for him to be going back to her family and by the expression of her face, she wasn't very happy about this. She wanted to spend more time with the stranger who treated her as an equal, rather then a murderous girl. Staying sat where she was, she felt the artificial breeze brush on her cheeks; gently moving her hair in the wind. He looked at her, beckoning for her to follow._

"_Come on Faith," he told her. "It's time for me to take you back to your family."_

_Like a child, she jumped to her feet and he smiled gently, happy she was obeying him. But then she stuck out her tongue, and playfully waved to him; her eyes mischievous and child-like. "You'll have to catch me first!"_

_Before he could do anything, she had begun to run to the other side of the roof. His eyes widened as fear came upon him. He couldn't care less about taking the girl back to her mother (deep inside he wished he was able to stay in her company for the rest of the evening) but he was more then caring about the girl dangerously running along the roofs of the Foundation, where she could easily fall to her sudden and early death._

_Running to her, he was able to catch her wrist before she had a chance to step onto the edge of the building, where she was about to climb onto the other roof. He pulled her back with strength a few steps. This kind of touch, kind of restraint, would send Faith off the edge; she would lash out and yell but all she did was turn around to the calm man, though his heart had pounded faster then it had done just seconds ago, and give him a sorry smile. She shuffled from one foot another as he spoke._

"_Being fourteen I'd have expected you to know how dangerous that kind of stunt is," he said, though his lips were curled upwards and his eyebrows were soft. "Now, I want to take you back to your mother, only because I think you'd be safer."_

"_Master Gaignun …" she said in protest, though he spoke above her._

"_How about …" he paused, looking at her. There was something so different … so delicate about her that he couldn't quite understand be he felt like he had to do something for her; for them almost. He felt a strange feeling, one that wouldn't go in vain, that he would meet this girl again. "Come with me to the shop. We'll only be five minutes."_

_Frowning though more then obedient, she followed him down the scaffolding, climbing back down onto safe ground. Once they were back on their feet, she brushed down her cloths with her hands, before he took her fingers once again to be wrung around with his. She struggled for a moment to keep up with his fast pace, her legs moving so quickly it was almost like a jog, but once he noticed her he slowed down, chuckling a little. "Sorry," he told her quietly as they turned their corner, to a large, beautiful shop made just like the others. Its exteriors didn't quite catch people's eyes, but what was inside would defiantly bring about attention._

"_Beautiful works of art," he smiled as he pulled her into the shop. The shop was covered in beautiful, expensive pieces of jewellery. He nodded to the man at the counter, before leading her to the side of the shop. Placed neatly on the shelves were beautiful necklaces with crosses dangling on the edges of them. Instead of looking at the items, his emerald gems were looking at her and she wouldn't have noticed, being so drawn into the crosses beauty, until she felt the burning sensation of his eyes on her face. She turned to look at him; a little smile appeared on both their faces._

"_Pick one," he told her._

"_No, I don't want one," she shook her head, embarrassed. "I don't want you to buy me anything. You already got me ice cream, that's enough."_

"_It's not just for you," he said. "Crosses are a good symbol, don't you think? I'll keep it in my draw, so when we meet again we can share it."_

_It was a strange idea, and being young she couldn't understand it as much as she wanted to. But eventually she nodded, but then looked to another shelf. "What about a four leafed clover?"_

"_A four leafed clover?" he curiously asked, drifting over to the shelf she was gazing at. His eyes looked closely at the jewellery, but then her hands lifted up one necklace, which was beautiful. It was made from white gold; the four leaf clover quite big, yet not "in your face" kind of big. Two of the leaves, the ones opposite each other, had been carved out of beautiful emerald and framed and edged by the white gold, whilst the other two were a dark, almost midnight coloured Safire that in the light shone an ice blue shade._

"_Four leaf clover is a symbol for good luck," she smiled, holding it up to him. "They're harder to find now, what with Greenland being replaced by cities and metropolises. They're valuable, just like gems but you can't buy them. If you buy them I don't think it'll be just as lucky."_

"_Then how will this be lucky?" he asked her._

"_Because …" she paused, frowning a little. "Just … it counts as being lucky because its not real," she said, making him chuckle. "No wait … that doesn't make no sense … I'm … Hey!"_

_Before she could finish of her ramble, Gaignun had fished the necklace from her and was placing it back in the box, getting it ready to buy. Her eyes widened. "Gaignun, you don't need to get it! I was just saying because … It's up to you."_

"_It's got the colour of our eyes," he said calmly, taking it to the counter. He began to pay for it as he spoke to her. "Besides, if you say its lucky, then its lucky."_

"_Master Gaignun …"_

_

* * *

_

"_You're late," Emilia furiously glared at Faith, obviously angry at her child rather then the man that was meant to be caring for her. Gaignun gently pushed Faith foreword a little, though he felt like he wanted to protect her from the woman glaring at her._

"_I do apologize," he said, hoping his words would take some of the heat off the girl. "I kept her too long. I'm ever so sorry for that …"_

_With quick fingers, he slid the small black bag containing their necklace into the pocket of his black blazer; his motion unnoticed to everyone but Faith._

"_I thank you for taking care of my daughter, Master Gaignun," Emilia said, putting on her ever so warm smile that would cloud off her darkness. Yeshua smiled at Faith, who weakly smiled back; saddened at Gaignun's departure._

"_Its fine," he smiled. "It was a pleasure taking Faith around with me. Goodbye then," he turned to Faith. "I'll see you soon."_

"_See you soon," she smiled widely; their words leaving Emilia, Yeshua and Damion completely dazed._

_

* * *

_

"The Elsa isn't working!" Captain Mathews informed them as they entered the ship, having gotten onboard without getting caught up in the explosion. The words made Faith begin to panic; so they weren't going to get out of this? No! She had to tell Gaignun she was okay – she wanted to rest in Gaignun's arms and let him hold her so he felt relief of knowing she was safe.

"Dammit!" Rubedo yelled loudly. Faith turned to Captain Mathews.

"Isn't there anything we can do?" she asked him.

"No," he groaned. "We got too much damage from landin' on the Stronghold."

"Don't you have anything to fix this ship with?!" she asked, shocked. "Not even Robots or anything of the sort?!"

"We didn't get the repair robots yet," Tony replied to her.

Just as all hope was lost and they believed they were to be sucked into the black holes, without any chance of being saved, the ship suddenly lifted up; disturbing everyone inside of it.

"It's the Durandle!" Rubedo happily cried; his words like sugar to Faith's ears.

Once they had been successfully docked onto the Durandle and away from the two black holes that had dispersed; in pure safety, Faith was the first one to run out of the ship; more then eager to visit Gaignun again. The others quickly followed her, yet she was the first to make it to the bridge, getting a warm welcome by Mary and Shelly.

"Hey there lil' Faith," Mary smiled, hugging her gently. "Are ya feelin alright? You took quite a pounding back in the dive. Master Gaignun was worried sick!"

"I know," Faith nodded sadly. "I'm doing fine though. All alive and healthy!" she smiled happily, looking side to side for her black headed beloved, who she had much information to tell. "Where is Gaignun?"

"He's in his office on the lower floor," Shelly informed her with her calm voice. Faith nodded gratefully, quickly racing down to the bridges elevator, leaving the group to discuss the plans to go to Old Miltia. Before she went down to the other floor, she waved softly to Momo, who was smiling at her warmly. She couldn't see herself becoming close friends with the hundred series, but at least she was finding her company much better then before.

Once on the lower floor, she moved with quick feet to his office on the other end. The floor was extremely dark, with few lights in there. It was more then eerie as she walked down, though the excitement wouldn't let it get to her. All she wanted to do was to wrap her arms around him, and tell him she was the little girl he had met five or so years ago. She was the girl who had helped him buy the clover necklace that was hopefully still sitting in his draw.

Once she was at his door, she didn't wait for a reply once she knocked. She pushed the button with her thin finger, letting herself into his room. If possible, the office was darker then the hallway, and if it wasn't for the few monitors, she wouldn't have been able to look around. The room was quiet save for the gentle humming of the machines that were still working away, though no one was using them. It was in a slight mess, the stylus for the touch-screen keyboard was lying by her feet, the pen close behind it. A few sheets of work with her hand writing on them were scattered across the dark class table, just about avoiding the spilt coffee that had begun to drip off the edge. Her fingers moved to the left, slowly fumbling around for a light switch. In a click the room was lit up, letting her see properly. There was no attacked or hurt Gaignun on the floor, making it all seem much stranger.

Taking a step foreword with her stiff legs, she called out. "Gaignun?"

There was a sudden bang from the room opposite her; the bathroom suite he had. She ran her fingers through her still slightly damp hair, her other hand clung to her too damp shirt as she slowly walked foreword, repeating his name again.

She squealed suddenly in fear; her body jumped as he appeared in front of her having quickly opened the bathroom door. His face was sickly pale; his hair a complete mess as if he or someone else had tugged painfully at it and his lip was torn; blood running down his chin. Even his cloths were a mess, and the first thing she did was quickly push him back into the bathroom. She wondered whether someone else had … touched Gaignun but she knew that wasn't true by the touch of happiness in his eyes when he saw her. If he had been cheating on her he'd have been shook up and panicked, but he was clearly joyful to see her. In the bathroom, she sat him down on the edge of the tub, putting a finger on his lip for him to be quiet. She grabbed some tissues and ran them under the cold water and then dabbed at his cut. He winced a little as she pushed against the torn, tender flesh and she apologized by kissing him gently on the cheek.

"What happened?" she whispered in his ear, before kissing that too with her soft lips. She put the bloody tissues into the bin before removing his blazer; his skin boiling hot to the touch.

"Nothing …" he managed to whisper, helping her remove his blazer. He smiled at her, and stood to his feet. She noticed something strange in his eyes; a little flicker of blue. The flicker was so fast, almost impossible to see, and gone in a flash that she didn't think anything of it. He put a hand on her cheek once she had put the blazer onto the door.

"Are you okay?" he asked her; the pair of them becoming clouded by their own bubble like they did many a time. "Your head …" his other finger touched under the bandage. "And your wet … Soaking wet …"

"Long story," she giggled. "Blame your redheaded brother for that. He soaked me, Gaignun!" she playfully whined.

"Aww …" Gaignun smiled. "I'll get him back for you … I promise," he smiled, wrapping his hand around her waist.

"Hey, I had something amazing to tell you!!" she happily cried; her joy making the smile on his face widen as the colour returned to his cheeks. He pulled her closer to her, and grinned.

"Oh? And what's that?" he asked, bringing his face barely an inch from hers. He loved, no more then loved, getting close to her; holding her possessively, knowing she was his. He loved her.

"Do you remember the blonde headed girl you met five years ago?" she asked. "Do you remember mother? And Damion and chaos and the ice cream and the-" he had suddenly covered her mouth with his, stopping her from speaking. The kiss had been slightly abrupt, but it was loving; the most loving kiss he had ever given her. From that kiss she knew he remembered; he remembered everything.

Pulling away, he slightly left the room, leaving her to stand there. In an instant, after a few drawers being opened, he had come back in. Clutched in his hand was the necklace they had chosen together all those years ago; neither of them having remembered the incident until that day. He tenderly brushed her hair out of his way as he placed the necklace on her; his face facing hers. Once he clipped it on, he placed it perfectly on her chest, admiring it for a few long moments.

"Beautiful …" he whispered, his hand touching her cheek gently. "You're not going to leave me, are you?" he asked with worry in his tone. She got the image there was something else other then her own safety and the fact he loved her that he wanted her to stay at his side. Still, she shook her head.

"I never will," she promised. She touched the necklace, stroking the white gold soothingly. "I can't believe we knew each other before …"

"I know …" he whispered, still not believing it all. "I knew there was something about you … But I just couldn't remember …"

She smiled against his lips as he brought her into another kiss. After a few minutes, she pulled away, smiling playfully at him. "So … are you going to tell me what happened to your office?" she asked, leaning her hands on his moving chest.

"I'm … not too sure," he truthfully answered. Not wanting to pressure him for an answer and knowing there was something deep about what was going on, she pulled away from him, going into the office. She began to clear up for him, even though he was trying to stop her. Eventually, she had won the fight and the office was back to its neat state.

"What do you want me to do now?" she asked him as he sat down.

"Well …" he paused. "I still have some work to do before I can finish. You can stay here if you want."

"But I'd be useless," she said. "I'd be mere decoration … not that I'm pretty enough to be one …"

He gasped. "No, don't even think that," he told her with a raised voice. "You're the most beautiful person I've ever seen. Please don't think that at all," she wasn't sure whether his words were true or not, but her lips formed a wide smile none the less as her cheeks painted red. "You can help a lot too. You can fetch me coffee, help me do paper work with your lovely handwriting … sit on my lap and watch me work …"

She grinned happily, bouncing a little. "I'll start with the coffee," she said, grabbing the old cup. He watched her happily as she left the room, his eyes turned back to the computer.

"_Stay out of me … stay out of my mind … at least whilst she is here …"_ he warned through his mind as he stared at the screen, picking up the stylus. He began to work and before he knew it, a steaming hot cup of coffee was placed next to his wrist. The heat emitted from through the porcelain, warming up his skin quickly, and giving it a tingling sensation as it changed from cold to hot on his wrist.

"Here you go," she smiled, putting down a plate covered in chocolate brownies. "Chaos got me them, he left them with Rubedo whilst he went to the Foundation. You can have some."

He smiled, giving her a grateful thank you and sipped some of the warm, strong, coffee. "That tastes great."

She smiled, happy she did something right. Finally, her cloths had dried from the water that had seeped through them a few hours ago. Like a timid person, she slowly moved to stand by him, wanting to watch him, yet too nervous to sit on his knees. Through the corner of his eye, he watched her and pulled his little trick of taking her by the hip and pulling her down. She cried a little as she was suddenly pulled to sit on his lap, but giggled none the less.

"Your hair is still wet," he laughed. He ran his fingers through it, messing the slightly damp locks up so they'd dry curly.

"Gaignun," she moaned, pulling his hands away with a smile. He laughed a little, nuzzling his nose into her sweet smelling hair. His hand wrapped around her waist, preventing her from any escape. "Can we play a game?"

He laughed. "I'm meant to be working …"

"Come on," she said, easing the stylus from his fingers. "Just something funny. You need a break; the stress is getting to you."

"Faith," he firmly said, not letting her take the stylus. "One hour of work and me and you can take a walk around the Foundation. We'll go to the ice cream store …"

Her eyes widened happily, shinning with joy. "Can we go home, too?"

"In Second Miltia?" he asked her. She nodded.

"Can …" she paused a little. "May I call it home too?"

"Anywhere I call home is a place _you_ call home too," he told her happily. "We have another home in the Foundation too, identical to the Second Miltia home. I'll get your cloths transferred from Miltia to here, okay? And anything else?"

"Please not Little Miss Morbid. Leave her alone."

"She can fend for herself," Gaignun agreed, obviously not liking the previous idea he had of buying the bird for Faith to have company. The thing was an annoyance; no doubt about it.

* * *

Faith ran into the house; her happiness again causing the black headed man to also light up in joy. Unexpectedly, he shut the door behind them and caught up with her at the steps. Not knowing he was going to playfully attack her, she smiled sweetly at him; her eyes warm and shinning with happiness. Suddenly, he pressed down on her sides, tickling her; her skin so sensitive she broke down in a fit of laughter, leaning foreword into Gaignun. "Stop it," she begged; tears prickling her eyes as he continued to tickle her, no chance of stopping. "Gaignun!" she laughed, her face going red as he continued to get her to laugh. She struggled to breathe through the laughter, and eventually he stopped, giving her a chance to breathe. Though he had stopped, she was still laughing, making him too laugh. He loved seeing her so bright and happy, he loved being the cause of it. Bad things had happened to the poor girl – horrible and nasty things and though she believed herself to be a horrible murderer, he thought otherwise. He thought of her as a wonderful girl he wanted to make smile and laugh. To his joy, she collapsed into his chest, her laughter at a soft pace.

"Calm down," he told her, though unable to contain his own. "Haha, Faith you're going to have a heart attack."

"If I do," she breathed, laughing. "It's your fault for tickling me."

"I'm not doing it anymore," he grinned. "Why are you laughing?"

She smiled happily. "It's just from being with you …"

* * *

Unsettled, he pulled her body closer to his. Breathing in her scent, he smiled, feeling her body move delicately in the darkness as she slept with her slightly limp arms wrapped around his body. Her breathe against the skin of his collar bone was soothing to him, just like his heart beat was soothing to her; what had sent her fast asleep. Gaignun's face was tucked deep into her hair and he nuzzled her gently, trying to get comfier. Managing to pull a hand off her gently, as to not wake her from her slumber, he reached for the sheets that had fallen down their bodies. He pulled it up to them, to cover him and her; the cold air from the Autumn night making their room colder then usual. He tucked the sheets around her body and some of his before returning his face to her hair. Just as he finally found himself at peace, about to fall fast asleep with his arms wrapped around her and her arms wrapped around his, he felt the strange sensation in his mind. The sensation of dread that made his eyes sharply open.

'_Don't bother …'_ Gaignun warned in his mind, clinging tighter onto Faith. _'Don't bother hurting her or even trying to.'_

_('If I do it will be you hurting her, not me,')_ the dark voice in his head replied, sending shivers to run furiously down Gaignun's spine. _('So you finally went all the way with the girl?')_

'_What makes you think that?'_ Gaignun asked, though he dreaded the answer.

_('The fact your still inside-')_

'_Shut up!'_ he yelled at voice, closing his eyes tightly. _'Leave me alone. Leave us alone. I don't know what you want, but I don't want you.'_

_('This isn't about what you want anymore, Nigredo …')_ the voice told him menacingly. _('You got what you wanted when you killed me all those years ago.')_

'_I obviously didn't for the fact your still alive …'_ Gaignun glared.

_('Don't get clever with me …')_ he hissed. _('Your good with books but not with sharp silver tongues, like the girl. This is about what I want now, Nigredo.')_

Gaignun's arms moved; his fingers wrapping around the pink and red locks that belonged to Faith. Not at his own will, he leaned down to gently nibble at her lips. He tried to fight back, to stop whatever was inside of him for making him do all this.

'_Get out, leave me alone …'_ he glared, shutting his eyes tighter as he prayed, he prayed with all his might Faith wouldn't wake up. He could feel her stirring from "his" bites at her neck.

_('You're so weak Nigredo …')_ the voice taunted. _('You're the one doing this to her, so it's not like she'll know any different.')_

'_Get out! Stop it and get out!!'_

**Comments - ** Yay a long chapter that I actually ENJOYED to write! X) It's been so long since I've wrote an uber long chapter and enjoyed it at the same time, so leave me alone about the crummyness! XP The little Albedo and Faith thing didn't last long, huh? I should've made it longer but I was soooo eager to do the Gaignun thing I couldn't wait – sorry =P Btw, I hope I haven't got anything wrong with the Gaignun and his father in his mind thing. I wasn't sure whether he lost his mind COMPLETELY at that time, but I don't care. I don't suppose he did, did he? Otherwise that'd be a … very awkward year between Xenosaga 2 and 3 (yeah I need to check out my Xenosaga knowledge some time soon – I've forgotten half the plot already. *sarcastic YAY ME moment*)

Thank you again for the reviews! And I finally uploaded my first original piece of writing on Fictionpress thanks to you guys (its called Paper Ink and my username is still "Sweet Sedaytion"). Hope you enjoyed this chapter and I'll try to upload again as soon as I can~ I'm still really, really happy you guys review and I promise I'll try to reply to them as soon as I have the time. Again, have fun reading and apologize for any crummy stuffs =P


	26. Family Introductions

**|| Chapter [Twenty-Six] ||**

**Family Introductions**

To his pure relief, Faith hadn't awoken that night whilst he had been awake. Thankfully, his father let him rest for a few hours, before being rudely awoken by the gentle yet annoying humming of the phone vibrating against the bed side table. Still groggy, Gaignun blinked a few times, his mind feeling drowsy from Dmitri's attack during the night he had managed to fight off. Faith was still soundlessly lying asleep with her arms still wrapped around him, just like she had been a few hours ago. Moving his hand, he brushed some of her tangled locks from her eyes to gaze at her face whilst he waited for the phone to dye out as the person hung up. He wasn't planning on going into work that day, and any phone calls he got would be instantly ignored. The person ringing him was most likely Rubedo, telling him he was half an hour late or something of the sort but Gaignun couldn't care for his older brothers moaning. Instead he cuddled closer to Faith, feeling his mind belonging to himself and himself only; Dmitri had either let him be or had disappeared completely.

Stirring gently, the sound of the phone was beginning to interrupt her rest. With her mind becoming linked with her body again, she held tighter onto Gaignun, her arms not being limp anymore. With a soft moan she blinked a few times, waking up slowly. Still half asleep, half awake and completely oblivious to the fact 'Gaignun' had been nibbling at her skin during the night, trying to get her to wake up, she muttered something quietly to him. "Gaignun … phone …"

Smiling at her voice and the fact she was on the edge of consciousness, he replied to her; his morning voice deep and alluring. "Just ignore it …" he told her, pulling her so close they could have easily blended into one. "I'm not going to work today …"

The words made her wake up properly and her head snapped to his. With her eyes clouded in joy, she let her lips curl upwards. "Are you … for real? You're staying here with me today?" she checked, feeling excitement run through her heart.

"Of course," he smiled, kissing her cheek. He wanted to squeeze out every moment they could spend together alone; he didn't know when his father would come by without a word, or when Albedo would try to steal her away or even when she would go away with Rubedo to do a mission. He had no idea what would happen in the future and he wanted to keep her to himself for as long as he could. "We'll spend the day together – just me and you …" the phone finally stopped vibrating when he continued. "Did you sleep well?"

"Mmhmm …" she nodded, leaning peacefully on the pillow, letting Gaignun brush her hair with his fingers. "Did you?"

"Yeah …" he lied.

"You still look sleepy …" she commented though her eyes were half shutting as she spoke. "Maybe you should go back to sleep?"

"No, I couldn't," he said, though he did feel sleepy. He wanted to go back to sleep, but he wanted to stay awake with her.

"Go on, you want to," she laughed, moving her hands to gently shut his eye lids. "Go to sleep, its seven in the morning, you can rest for a few hours."

Gaignun felt himself slipping into the slumber as he lay there; his attempts to stay awake went to waste. In a few moments his fingers went limp around her strands of hair, letting them go slowly. She smiled as he drifted off, hearing him mutter something she couldn't quite make out. Slowly, as to not wake him again, she slipped from his grip, wrapping the sheets tightly around his cool body. Making her way out of the bed, Faith grabbed Gaignun's dress shirt that had been neatly put on the chair. She put the thin fabric on her body, literally drowning in it. Once she had dressed in his sweet smelling shirt, she stood to her feet, trying not to fall onto weak knees as she got out of bed. Putting a hand on her dizzy head, she reached for the phone that had been ringing. Unlike what Gaignun had thought, it was Faith's phone that was ringing in the background and had drawn them both from a peaceful slumber.

She put the phone to her ear as she left the room, listening to the message that had been left on it. The hallway was dark, but she managed to make her way to the steps, listening carefully to chaos's message he had left her.

"_Hello Faith, its chaos. I need you to phone me when you can – we need to talk …"_

Before she listened to the rest of the message, she hung up the phone whispering "no we don't," to it. She deleted the message with a few presses of buttons, before placing the phone to rest on the banister. With quick feet, she made her way downstairs, happily moving into the large kitchen that was identical to the one in his other home in Second Miltia. The only difference between the two homes was the colour scheme used; unlike the wine red and warm shades, the home at the Foundation used colours of white and black; modern and almost cold. Faith, being more of a warm family person, much preferred the look of the old home rather then the one she was in then. She wondered if she convinced Gaignun enough she would be allowed to paint the walls a difference colour – perhaps not wine red but maybe something other then a bland white. White was too boring and dull.

Taking her mind off the colour subject, she opened the fridge door, taking out a carton of orange juice. She poured the cold, orange liquid into a clean glass, before putting the carton back. She drank the refreshing drink quickly, feeling better after having something to drink. Her eyes searched the home as she drank, not sure of what to do with herself while Gaignun rested. She figured she could go back into the bed and sleep, but she didn't want to do that. Nor did she want to wake up Gaignun – she'd most likely fall or drop something or do _anything_ to disturb his sleep and she didn't want to take the chance. Sighing deeply, she made her way to the bathroom, being quiet with her steps. Once inside the large bathroom, she moved to the sink, turning on the tap. Her eyes looked up to the mirror hanging above it; staring at her bandaged forehead.

And then she noticed some blood crusted on one side of her neck. The dry blood made a frown appear on her face as she noticed it was covering a wound. Dipping her fingers into the water, she made her fingers wipe the blood off her skin, hissing a little from the sting as she rubbed her torn flesh. Once the cut was clear, she looked closely at the mirror and the frown deepened. "What … the hell …?"

* * *

"She's just going to ignore you chaos," Rubedo laughed as the white headed tried to phone Faith again. With concentration along with a hint of worry in his eyes, he put the phone to his ear only to hear the dreaded ringing of a phone not being answered. Rubedo couldn't help but laugh at chaos's efforts to get Faith, which were all going in vein. "Mary couldn't get hold of Gaignun either …"

"Does that not worry you?" chaos asked; trying again after the phone went onto answering machine. Rubedo shook his head.

"No," he answered, sitting back on the Elsa's terminal. "If you can't get hold of _her_ and you can't get hold of _him_ isn't that kinda obvious about what's distracting _them_?"

There was a little urge in chaos to tell Rubedo to shut up, but he managed to brush it away with ease. He couldn't help but feel despise towards whatever it was Rubedo was implying. Seeing Faith being held by Gaignun, and her holding him back was painful to chaos' eyes. Whatever happened when it was the pink and red headed girl and the white headed boy? What happened to those days when she spent all her time with _him_? Chaos knew it – he missed those times. He missed Faith holding his hand when she was younger, shinning her happy child-like eyes in his direction. He wanted to be the one to protect Faith during what was going on, and he couldn't – Gaignun was the one doing that … and … a bit of _jealously_ was in his heart though he knew he'd never act upon it. Holding the phone as the feeling of uselessness came to him, he only wished he could get hold of her. He didn't _need_ to talk to her as such, but he _wanted_ to. The only thing he needed was her.

He needed to know she was okay.

* * *

"_Kill me then!" Faith screamed at Yeshua as they stood outside. The pair of them stood by the woods, the trees casting a dark shadow around them. A line of blood was across the dark floor, leading somewhere deep into the woods where they had just been. He wasn't able to get the image of the torn up carcass out of his mind – the newest thing fifteen year old Faith had done. The skin was torn around the throat and the chest; the fingers torn away from the body and lying on the floor, drenched in blood so that they were no longer a flesh colour. The face of the person was in a terrible state; flesh torn in so many places it was almost impossible to tell whether the person was a man or a woman – their face gone beyond the point of reconstruction. It would be a miracle if the calm boy was ever to find out who she had yet again dramatically killed in one of her fits. An urge to vomit came to his mind as he placed his dark yellow gloved hand over his lips, his mind still not working out the words of Faith's abrupt scream._

"_Go on then! Do it!" she screamed louder then before so that his mind would awaken. He turned his eyes to stare at her; taking in what she looked like. She was drenched in blood; her once beautiful white dress was now splattered in red blood almost like someone had splattered it across her randomly. She smelled of the sharp metallic blood she had a strange lust for, her cheeks were stained in her magnificently beautiful and serene tears that he strangely loved. The tears rolled down her face in small perfect shapes, leaving a shinning line on her skin. Her eyes were covered in them, and though it was painful to stare at her sorrowful gems, he couldn't mistake their beauty whilst she cried. Her blonde hair was a mess; the roots coming through sharply. It had been awhile since she had dyed her hair and it would need to be dyed soon in order to keep her disguise up. Her hands were in fists, shaking from the mix of almost every emotion in her heart._

"_Kill me, Yeshua!" she screamed again, making a few birds fly off into the air; escaping her yelling._

_He shook his head weakly, bringing himself to finally speak. "…N-no …"_

"_Do it!" she yelled. As he stared at her, he wasn't sure whether she wanted to die or if she was telling him to do so because it was his 'job'. "You're failing your mission. God won't be pleased with you, Yeshua," she angrily spat. Yes, it was obvious – she wanted to die or irritate him. Either way, he wouldn't let it happen. He didn't want to kill her; he didn't care if he was 'meant' to, he would never do such a thing._

"_No," he repeated gaining his normal voice back. "I'll … I'll never kill you …"_

"_Are you weak?!" she asked him, stepping foreword to the almost trembling boy. Her eyes were menacingly glowing, as if she was enjoying what was going on. But she would be wouldn't she? The girl wasn't normal, she was sadistic; she'd enjoy anything dark she'd do or be the reason of. "Are you so weak you can't hurt me?"_

"_Faith … please," he begged, not wanting to even think about having to kill her. "I told you I'd make it work out. I told you I'd help you without doing what everyone else wished. God doesn't wish for you to die. Faith, we need you. You can't and you won't die."_

"_That was four years ago, Yeshua," she told him. "Four years you've tried to 'help' me and it hasn't worked," she looked down at the blood on the floor, admiring its beauty. "I'm never going to stop … I'm never going to stop and we both know that …"_

"_You will …" he soothingly whispered, placing a hand softly on her shoulder. "You'll stop … I'm going to help you … Nothing will get in the way."_

_He drew her close into an embrace, feeling the damp blood against his body. He pulled her face to lean against his as her tears began to run onto his skin. Soothing his hand on her back, he felt her shivering from his touch; wrapping her arms slowly around his body. "I love you, Faith." He told her, though was granted no reply to his words._

* * *

Later in the morning, after having a quick shower and drying her hair, she made her way back downstairs, leaving Gaignun to still sleep in the bed; exactly how she had left him about an hour and a half ago. Running her hand through her clean hair, she smiled happily; feeling free. She had wished for a life like this, to live in a house without anything to harm her or to hate her and she had it. Now she had it, she couldn't be happier. The world was happy for once in her normally morbid life and nothing would be a able to stop it. Again, the phone rung in her hand, chaos's name coming up on the screen in bright blue letters, making a little irritated frown appear on her face.

"You're not ruining my morning …" she muttered, pushing and holding down on a button. The phone switched off in an instant, leaving the screen blank. She placed the phone on the counter, smiling contently as she got rid of chaos.

"Can't believe your ignoring a friend …" a strange, unfamiliar voice commented behind Faith. Swiftly turning around in shock, she found herself shaking at the voice that sent fear to run into her heart. Staring at the person, she blinked a few times, letting a warm smile appear on her face.

"Your voice sounded strange for a moment," she laughed as the fear left her body, being replaced with the happiness she got from seeing Gaignun. Though she could sense something different about him, she ignored it, naively watching him with content eyes. "That was chaos by the way. He keeps telling me about you going to work. That's why I'm ignoring him."

Gaignun laughed, his laugh too was strange to her ears. "Silly girl that's a bit unfair. I want to go to work now; I want to be able to have the relief of staring at anything but your ugly face."

Her eyes widened from his sharp, stabbing words and her legs felt like jelly. She felt like crying from the cruel words Gaignun had said to her, yet she wouldn't let herself. All she could do was mutter his name quietly in confusion. What had got into him? What the hell had sent him off to say such cruel words and look at her with such cruel, cold eyes that once looked at her with love plastered in them? She could see the love, just a small hint, but mostly she could see something that sent shivers down her spine as if it wasn't really Gaignun looking at her. But she wouldn't believe that as much as she wanted to. She wanted to believe it wasn't Gaignun, but she wouldn't let herself.

"What are you doing just standing there?" he glared; his glare so dark she couldn't help but flinch and tare her eyes away from him. "Do something useful you pathetic girl," his words reminded her of Albedo. Was he too going crazy? Suddenly, she felt his fingers grasp hold of the top of her arm in an iron grip she couldn't get hold of. He pulled her close to him, her terrified face just inches away from his almost angry one. Shaking from fear, she squirmed to try and get him off her.

'_Don't do it! Please, leave her alone, don't you dare hurt her!'_ Gaignun begged to his father in his mind. It had gotten past the point of him being angry. He was desperate, desperate to know she would be okay. He knew he was losing the fight and soon his body would be Dmitri's completely. He didn't know how long for, but most likely enough time for him to serverly harm Faith.

_('I won't be the one hurting her if I do …')_ Dmitri menacingly commented as he made "Gaignun" kiss Faith hard. She moaned, making noises of no as she tried to back away. It didn't feel like Gaignun – it didn't feel like the man she loved and to be honest, she was absolutely petrified.

Crying out as he suddenly pushed her away, her back slammed into the front of the counter. The pain made her body weakly fall limp to the floor, her terrified eyes looked up at Gaignun. She felt a little hint of anger towards him, but she couldn't stop her tears running down her face. Yes, the push was painful, but his eyes were so frightening … so fear-some that it was like she was a Kirshwasser again with no hopes whatsoever whilst staring at Master, waiting a painful strike. She was overwhelmed with confusion as Gaignun sharply pulled her to her feet, making white hot pain run through her body as he grabbed her by her wrist with a quick tug.

'_Stop it!!'_ the real Gaignun yelled in his mind, trying to take full control of his body again. Unwontedly, he pushed Faith down to the floor, hearing her cry out again as he knees slammed onto the cold, hard floor. Staring back up at Gaignun, she yelled at him.

"What the hell are you doing?!" she cried fearfully. "Stop it!"

"Gaignun can't do that …" the third person speech made Faith even more confused as to what was going on. As she stared at "Gaignun" who was grinning menacingly, the real Gaignun was unable to take full control of his body and stop Dmitri. As if he had fallen asleep, Dmitri took over Gaignun's body properly, letting the real Gaignun 'rest' as he acted in his place without the annoying cries of his son telling him to stop. "Faith … is a horribly old name …"

"You said you liked old fashioned names …" she whispered, confused and unaware of the second person within Gaignun.

Just as he lunged foreword to grab her again, she darted to her feet. With quick legs, she ran across the kitchen, over to the dinning room. Gaignun was slightly stunned as he stared; watching as Faith quickly pulled the knife he had given to her from her coat pocket. With trembling hands, she held tightly onto the knife, locking eyes with Gaignun for a split second before he ran to catch her up. Gasping, she turned to the side, slipping between the chairs as she turned suddenly around the dinning table. The turn caused her almost to slip on the floor but she managed to gain her balance. Her heart pounded quickly against her chest as she heard the draw in the kitchen open.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Gaignun told her as she turned to face him; her hands clinging to the door frame. She watched as his strong fingers pulled out a knife from the draw. "And I know you won't hurt me, what with those 'powers'. I don't know what came over me … Faith … please … I love you … I love you more then life itself …"

She paused for a long moment. Her heart beat slowed down as she stared into his slightly softer emerald eyes. She saw the same blue flash as she stared; contemplating something. After another long moment of thinking, she spoke. "Don't tell me such words until you mean it."

In anger, Gaignun glared at her. "You impudent snob!!" he furiously yelled, moving forward quickly again. Her eyes widened as she quickly ran out of the room, and into the hall. She didn't take her chances with the front door, knowing it would be locked. She had no idea where the key was and testing it out would only lose her time. She raced to the second floor, quickly hiding in the spare room beside the steps. With a panicked heart, she moved behind the wardrobe; waiting for him so she could surprise attack him. Her breathing was faster then it ever had been before; she felt as if she was going to have a heart attack. Was he really going to kill her? Her head felt dizzy from the couple of times he threw her onto the floor, and her legs felt like they were going to give way under her.

She held tighter onto the knife with her sweating palms, blowing some dust off her nose. After what felt like hours she heard gentle footsteps from beside the door. Closing her eyes tightly to gain the courage she would need, she made her breathing painfully slow; holding her one hand on her lips to make the breathing as discreet as she could.

Once the door opened, she heard his much softer voice call out. "Faith?" the was a hint of desperation in his tone she couldn't miss. As he called her name again, it sounded like Gaignun – the real Gaignun. Slowly, she edged her way out of the side of the wardrobe; her moving had gained his attention as she stared at him with wide eyes. His expression turned completely soft as he looked at her; one of guilt mixed with happiness. Yes … the man earlier she met eyes with wasn't Gaignun but … it had been. It had been his body that threw her to the ground, it had been his mouth that yelled at her.

Before she had a chance to speak, he moved to her, wrapping his arms tightly around her body. He held her possesivly close to his warm body, tears pricking his eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry … I'm so very sorry …" he whispered, pleading with her to forgive him. He didn't wish to tell her about Dmitri. Eventually, he felt her confused arms wrap around his; her skin trembling in fear as he touched her.

From that point he realized she would never look at him like she did before. The knife banged as it fell from her lose fingers and onto the floorboards near them. Never would Faith feel entirely safe in his arms, nor would he feel entirely safe holding her.

He knew soon he would be her worst enemy. Soon Faith would fear Gaignun. Tears ran down his face as he thought of this. He held her tighter, wanting her to feel safe. "I love you ... I love you ..." he kept whispering to her so that she knew it was him. So she knew he loved her.

'_I don't care … I don't care what you do to her …'_ Gaignun told Dmitri. _'Just don't hurt her … don't harm her again … God please don't harm her … Please …'_

_('Did I scare you? Do you think she'll still love you?')_ he menacingly replied as Gaignun clung tighter onto Faith who had begun to slowly cry.

'_She will … I hope so … Please, don't harm her … Just tell me you'll leave her be …'_

_('I won't leave her be, but I won't harm her …')_ he cruelly laughed.

**Comments –** Okaaaayy so kinda (pretty much) crummy chapter. I wanted to have a go at Dmitri / Faith stuff, so this is like a tester if you will =P I hope it wasn't too confusing. Tis kinda hard to write actually, but sooo fun!~ Thanks again for reading and any reviews you might give me!~ I'll upload a better chapter soon, I promise =)


	27. Promised Pain

**|| Chapter [Twenty-Seven] ||**

**Promised Pain**

From upstairs in the bedroom, Gaignun could hear the muffled lyrics of the song "You Are My Sunshine" being played downstairs. The once beautiful song had taken upon itself a creepy aura to shroud it – the song that once warmed his heart, that reminded him of the time she had been sat on the counter the day after he thought she were to die, had now changed; it sent shivers to uncontrollably run down his spine. Her unhappiness was the reason it was being played throughout the house walls, hoping to cheer someone up with its tune, but all it did was remind Gaignun of what 'he' had done to the poor girl just under an hour ago. Taking it upon himself, he buttoned up his white shirt before moving down to the first floor. Faith was sat on the sofa, her hair perfectly straight and her cloths looking beautiful against her body. Her knees were brought dejectedly up to her chest as she cradled her phone in her shaking hand. If it weren't for the red around her raw eyes, or the bloodshot look to them, she'd have looked perfect as if nothing had happened at all, but he knew better then that. Gaignun could still see the fear plastered on her face, and when he checked her over ten minutes ago a painful purple bruise had begun to show on her back where 'he' had pushed her into the counter.

Never had he seen her in such a state – never had he seen her be reduced to such salty tears. Even when everything bad happened, when she got attacked by Albedo (who did much worse damage then 'Gaignun' had done before) and when she watched her past go before her eyes; where in a split second she was from an innocent girl to a bloodthirsty murder, even during those times she didn't weep like she did then against his chest. The most painful thing about hearing her sob so badly was the fact he was the one who caused it. Even though 'he' had attacked her, she still looked to him for comfort and safety. He had held tightly onto her, and she held even tighter onto him. Before he went upstairs to change, Gaignun knew she still, surprisingly loved him. She hadn't asked for an explanation – she had just taken his true words that he loved her and would never harm her. Did Faith know what was going on? Did she have any idea that Dmitri was making his debut in Gaignun's mind? If she did … then she'd be even cleverer then he ever would realize.

Stepping foreword, he reached down to kiss her gently on the forehead. It was hard, extremely hard to touch her again. He was surprised she even let her lips curl inwards slightly; he was astonished she was still in the same house, letting him touch her. Faith's soft eyes looked up to him as he made his way to the CD player. In the push of a button the house was engulfed in a deep, dark silence. For a second as he stood there, listening to nothing at all apart from Faith's gentle breathing, he realized how it would have been better to keep the music playing, no matter how drab it was. Still, he didn't reach for the button of the CD player again; instead he turned around to Faith, holding out his hand. He outstretched his slightly stiff fingers to her as she stared at him like she was a wild, skittish animal that had never seen a human before.

"Please Faith …" he whispered with a dry throat. It killed him – terrified him to death to think she would be frightened of him, that their relationship would make a turn for the worse. Slowly but surely, she pushed her feet down to touch the floor. He stepped foreword as she took his hand with her shaking one, dropping the phone onto the soft sofa she had sat on. On her feet she felt like jelly but he had put an arm around her waist, holding her close to him. "I love you …" he whispered deep in her ear; his breathe tickled her skin, making a small giggle leave her lips. Gaignun smiled at this, holding her tighter against his body.

"I love you too," she whispered, nuzzling his shoulder affectionately. Her free fingers curled around the clover necklace she still kept on; her skin warming up the cold gems. Her heart pounded quickly against her chest as she held tighter onto Gaignun's hand. She wondered if he was going to lash out at her again, but she'd be able to deal with it. She wanted to forgive Gaignun. She didn't know what the hell had gotten into him, but whatever it was it had to be something she ignored. He said he couldn't even remember half of it – that his body acted at its own will. Perhaps Albedo had somehow gotten control of Gaignun's body through the mental link they shared. Yes, that could be it.

Hell the U.R.T.V's could do just about anything. Taking control of one another's bodies didn't seem to be that big a task, especially as Albedo couldn't die, Rubedo could control his aging and Gaignun could take control of people's emotions.

Which always left one question to loom over her head; did Gaignun ever take control of her emotions? Was the reason as to why she felt so calm was because of his powers? No, that couldn't be it; defiantly not. If he controlled her thoughts and feelings he'd have made her not cry like she had done earlier. He'd have made her feel safe and loved from the beginning. Hopefully.

"I think I may go to work …"

* * *

_Staring foreword, she held back the tears prickling her eyes. For the few moments after murdering the man in the woods, she could only feel a great empathy for the person. Like Yeshua had taught her many times to do, she fell down onto her knees, ignoring the pain of her weight suddenly landing on them. Bringing her delicate, red stained hands together, she straightened her back. She clasped her hands as tightly as they could go, shutting her eyes tightly for a few moments before letting the lids relax. With her eyes gently shut, and her hands together, the sticky red liquid being smelled just under her nose, she breathed out deeply. There was a strange feeling that came over her as she shuffled her feet a little, uncomfortable with sitting on her knees. It was strange; doing what Yeshua had taught her to do. It felt strange addressing 'God' for the first time in her life. Yeshua had told her to pray for the life of the person, if she were to ever murder again. She had been told to hope that his spirit resided in heaven and that his afterlife would be a good, happy one. Sighing deeply, she parted her lips ever so slightly before speaking in a monotone whisper._

"_Dear God …" she began. "Yeshua has told me to speak to you. I know that it may seem strange, and that you do not wish to hear the words of the person who murdered another man but please, take the decency to do so. I am not going to pray that you give the man happy place in Heaven, I pray for you to give him another chance at life. I also pray for you … not to forgive me … I wouldn't ask such a thing from you. I'm not sure how to end such a prayer, nor do I know what to say really. But I hope this little speech hasn't gone in vain. Truthfully, I do not believe of your existence, but I believe in my friend. If he says it's true, then it is."_

_Feeling blood running down her cheekbone, Faith made noises of 'ew' and pulled her hands apart. With the back of her hand, she wiped the blood away, only to smudge it even more with her bloodied skin. With something between a groan and a sigh, she pushed herself up to her wobbling legs. She couldn't deny, nor did she ever plan to, the complete joy she had from killing someone._

"_Beautiful …" a voice to the side of her commented. So transfixed on the mutilated body below her, she didn't notice or didn't have the energy to speak to the person. "I knew that red in your hair meant something did it not?"_

"_You came to talk, Mister Piazzolla?" she asked, turning her body to face the white headed man, yet keeping her blue eyes set on the dead corpse that was still oozing slowly with the remaining blood. "Do make it soon. I want to show Yeshua what I've done while it's still fresh."_

_Once Albedo had sat down in the woods, next to the corpse, Faith sat in the middle of them; still smelling the beautiful smell of the blood in her nose. As she licked her finger clean of the metallic liquid, her eyes turned to Albedo, who was curiously watching her. "You have a sibling, do you not?" he managed to ask, breaking the silence between them._

_Taking her red finger out her mouth long enough to talk, she answered with a morbid voice. "Yes. An older brother name Gabriel."_

"_Ahh the kind boy is the murderers brother … how strange …" he mused to himself._

"_Gabriel is the name of the other hand of God," Faith informed him quickly. Albedo leaned foreword to this, listening intently to her words. "He's an angel. A good person; sickly good if you ask me."_

"_Fascinating," he commented. "You know a lot about Christianity?"_

"_Yeah, grown up with it," she answered. "Plus we have a 'wanna-be God' in our house," she spitefully rolled her eyes as she thought about Yeshua, who at that moment she despised._

"_I have brothers," Albedo said in such an emotion Faith was unable to understand it. "One called Rubedo, and another called Nigredo … I hate them both …"_

"_Why … is that … may I ask?" Faith asked, leaning closer to Albedo, wishing to understand all his secrets, to understand the strange man who spoke to her on such a regular basis yet refused to give any information as to why he spoke to her._

* * *

_('Look at the hurt in her eyes … be sure not to anger such a little girl …')_ Dmitri commented as Gaignun pulled Faith into a soft embrace. Her body felt limp against hers, as if those little words had pulled out all the energy inside of her. _('Let me say something to the girl …')_

'_You will do no such thing …'_ Gaignun said, holding her closer. He wanted to hold Faith close to him, to protect her though he knew it was just as dangerous as letting her go in a room with Albedo. As he held her he knew for a fact it would be safer for the nineteen year old to get out of the house, perhaps meet up with chaos or with Rubedo. Getting away from Gaignun would be the safest thing for her to do, yet he didn't want her to go. As selfish as he thought it to be, _he_ wanted to protect her. He had planned to ignore whatever comments his father would have to throw at him, yet something's wouldn't be gone unheard. He hated how his father was planning a way to hurt his love. Whatever happened to a parent that would love whoever their child had? Especially if someone was as lucky as Gaignun – he adored Faith more then anyone else in the world, though it was evident they were polar opposite in some ways.

"Does it feel nice to watch them suffer?" Gaignun was unable to hold back the comment his father so desperately wanted him to say. After speaking, he bit down on his torn lip, yet was unable to take back his words. Already Faith had looked up to him with her curious multi-toned eyes.

"I don't want to talk about it …" she whispered, embarrassed by the way she had been before, especially if it were mentioned to Gaignun.

"Yes you do …" he whispered with such a soft tone it was thought to be soothing. With a warm hand, 'he' brushed her hair behind her ear, quietly caressing her cheek with the tips of his fingers so that her skin lightly trembled. "Tell me everyone … unload your feelings onto me …" Dmitri said through Gaignun, growing curious of the girl. It wasn't just curiosity that wanted him to get her to let out all the information. He knew how painful it would be to say it to Gaignun, and watching that … watching her come to the point of crying would be more then fun for the wicked man to view.

"Please …" she whispered, trying to pull away but his grip held her tight to his chest. A hint of anger was coming over her from his restraint. Something about him wasn't as soothing as it used to be and it was … strange … more then strange. His finger slipped down to her lip seductively as he brought his face down to hers, bringing his nail across her lip. She moaned a little as a tickling sensation overcame her lips; immediately she hung her head, trying to stop 'him' from touching her. His other hand moved down to her chest, his fingers running over the circle buttons of her red dress shirt, illustrating the shape of them. She shivered furiously as he kissed her cheek, beginning to lead a line of kisses to her lips. Never had he acted so … so … lustful and she didn't like it. She didn't like the way he slipped his tongue into her mouth, well more like forced, and she didn't like how his hands ran up and down her body.

After a few moments, she pulled sharply away. "Gaignun, what the hell are you doing?" she abruptly yelled, unsure of how to act with him still. She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, taking a step back from him. Quickly, she re-did one of the buttons he had managed to open with his slim, strong fingers. Looking at him, all she could see was a slightly hurt expression on his face, mixed with his urge for her. It was only a small emotion, but she couldn't help but feel weary of it. Nothing at all felt like Gaignun. Not the way he touched her, the way he kissed her or even the way he looked at her.

"Can't I do that?" he almost sadly asked, taking a step foreword to break the space between them. "Can I not touch the woman I love whenever I wish?" He stepped as close to her as he could, putting a hand on her hip, rather then wrapping it around her waist. Dmitri could tell, no he knew, Gaignun was Faith's biggest weakness. He had memories from his son, knowing Faith had spectacularly put her life on line for Gaignun and he knew she wouldn't be able to say no to him. He leaned down, nibbling almost painfully at her lips with his teeth.

"Gaignun …" she moaned, trying to pull away. His hand was on her back, sliding into the pocket of her jeans to prevent her from any escape. "I don't want this …"

"But I do …" he whispered, licking her lips before biting her neck. "You don't want to displease me, do you? You love me …"

"But you hurt me …" she tried to hold back her moan as he bit at her sensitive skin.

"I won't hurt you again," he breathed, feeling her beginning to melt into him.

'_Your sick, stop doing this …'_ Gaignun hissed to Dmitri as he finally gained a small moan from Faith.

_('She needed something sexual in her life. You don't do anything interesting with her …')_ Dmitri laughed. _('It's so fun …')_

'_Stop it, stop touching her …'_

"Did it feel _good_ to watch them suffer?" he repeated once she had fully melted into him. Faith leaned gently on his chest as he spoke to her, his breath against her cheek.

"Yes …" she answered, remembering the feeling she had whenever she killed. The relief was magical when she watched the blood empty from their flesh. Triumphant, 'Gaignun' leaned foreword, getting as close to Faith as he could do. He could feel something within Faith, something that made him know she would answer every question he asked her. With this unlocked, Dmitri could see what damage he could do to his son. Gaignun would most defiantly not want to hear the true murderous thoughts of Faith come from her mouth as she spoke to him.

"How do you feel about me …?" he asked her seductively. "Do you wish to kill me …?"

"I wish to kill most …" she replied with a breathless voice. "But I do not wish to kill Gaignun," her second sentence had a strong tone to it; so strong Gaignun pulled his head from her, to look at her with his slightly blue tinted eyes. For a split second he wondered if his ears had betrayed him or if he had heard the correct thing.

"Don't you mean me?" he smirked, flicking her nose gently to keep the cover up. She glared at Gaignun, shaking her head at the flick. Her skin hated the touch he had given her, wishing not for him to touch her again.

"No, I mean Gaignun," she said with a clear mind that wouldn't answer to anymore of his questions. Her eyes looked him up and down, figuring him out as best as they could. "Is it Albedo? Are you Albedo?"

Gaignun began to laugh, letting Faith take a few needed steps back, away from him. The phone began to nosily ring in the background, but she wouldn't let herself get distracted by it. Instead she stayed focused on 'Gaignun' who continued to laugh strangely. With her eyebrows furrowed, she hesitantly lifted up her hand, ready to attack him if need be. She wouldn't use all of her strength; just enough to stun him so she could get the real person back out in the open. It would be good practise, as the sadistic side of her thought. She had yet to have the chance of trying to hurt someone without actually hurting them. As a matter of fact the only people she hadn't killed using her powers were Albedo and Gabriel. You could also include Gaignun too in that mix, but that didn't count; she was so confused and stressed at that moment she wasn't thinking. But then she was; she could feel herself thinking properly.

"Haha, maybe you should have _Nigredo_ answer the question for you …" he smirked, before his eyes suddenly flashed a bright shade of emerald green. Once the bright had dyed down, it was left with Gaignun's natural shade. In the air she could feel the aura change to the one that belonged to Gaignun; his peaceful loving one that she adored with all her heart.

Before she could go to him in an embrace, he groaned as he suddenly was drawn back into his body. Weakly, his knees collapsed under him; his body having taken a great strain from the attack of Dmitri. With her eyes widened in shock, Faith ran foreword quickly, scooping her arms under Gaignun's to catch him before he hit the cold black floor. He gripped to her dimly, trying to keep his balance right as his legs were bent. Hushing him gently as a mother would a child; she slowly helped Gaignun down onto the floor, pushing him onto his knees. Still half in with the world, he followed her body movements perfectly, sitting on his knees as she sat back. Quickly, she moved to the white wall, leaning her back against the cold hard spot she used to lean on. "Come here …" she cooed, pulling him down to her.

Stretching her legs foreword, she adjusted herself and the sleepy Gaignun, moving him so that his side would rest against her, with his head leaned on her chest. His one hand mechanically wrapped around her waist, whilst the other one rested on her stomach, making her skin tingle. "It's alright, it's alright …" she told him, finally understanding entirely what had caused him to act like he did. Now she had seen 'him' admit that it wasn't truly Gaignun, she could understand it and wasn't fearful of him anymore. She smoothed her hand over his back, letting him listen to her soft heart beat.

Coming to properly, he fidgeted a little as his mind finally restored. In a way to calm him, she put her hand deep in his hair, playing with it gently, letting the soft locks twist around her fingers. Though she was quite a few inches smaller then him, their bodies fitted together perfectly as she eased him. He shut his eyes contently, enjoying resting with her. "I'm sorry …" he whispered into her chest, feeling the beating of her heart against her chest; the signal of her life. It was a peaceful repetition that he more then enjoyed listening to.

"It's alright," she smiled. "The … other one should be apologizing …" sighing deeply, she made herself ask the question. "Who is he, Ni-" she bit down on her lip painfully, stopping herself from using his old name. Confusion overwhelmed her as she tried to correct herself; what the hell had caused her to use his old name? A name she didn't even know that well? Trying not to confuse herself even more, she ignored it, repeating her question. "Who is he Gaignun?"

If he had noticed her nearly use his old name, he didn't comment. Instead he nuzzled her, sorrowfully sighing. "My father …"

After a long pause of silence that neither seemed to wish to fill, Faith finally parted her lips to speak. "Shall we get some ice cream?" she asked, hearing the noise of her ringing phone in the background that would be none other then chaos.

"_We need to talk …"_ It was always one problem after another …

* * *

"Why has it took so long for you to pick up?" chaos asked with a concerned voice. "I've been worried about you."

"Busy …" Faith half-heartedly replied as she made her and Gaignun's bed with one hand, which was proving to be a difficult task. Gaignun had quickly slipped away to get her and him some lunch from the restaurant down the road, giving Faith a good half an hour to pick up the phone to finally speak to the persistent chaos.

"With …?" he asked on the other end, not really wanting to hear the answer. Faith's brows narrowed as she heard this, glaring furiously though there was no one to glare to.

"No, not with Gaignun," she hissed. "With the bogeyman. Yes Gaignun, who else?"

"Faith calm down," chaos pleaded not being able to handle her angrier side. "I need to talk to you …"

"Oh so now you want to talk?!" she yelled, giving up on the slightly made bed. Instead she stormed out of the bedroom, slamming the door hard behind herself; the bang echoed throughout the entire house as she stomped down the hallway. "What about before, hmm? Why didn't you tell me I _fucked_ you?!" she hissed as menacingly as she could.

"I didn't …" he was unable to speak, feeling weak with her sadistic side on show. "Faith …"

"Stop it!" she yelled. "Stop saying my name like … like you _love_ it. I want you to leave me alone!" she felt a tear come to her eye as she thought deeply about chaos leaving her alone. "Leave …" her voice was getting weaker with each second. "Leave … me …" she bit her lip, finally feeling the thought of him leaving her again come into her mind.

* * *

"_Your … your …" she was unable to speak; the seventeen year old stared teary eyed at the white headed boy; her sobs trying to overtake her words. For once the tears that followed down her face weren't beautiful at all; they were sorrowful and dismal. "Leaving … me …?"_

"_It's the best thing for you …" he whispered, holding back his own tear. She stared at him, feeling like he was being as emotionless as rock; as cold as ice. "Faith … doing this can save you."_

"_I don't want to be alone!" she pleaded, her face a state as she cried. "Please don't, please don't do this. Yeshua, I don't want to be alone!"_

"_Faith you have to …" he whispered. "You have to do this …"_

"_Turning you into a Realian will be the only way to start afresh," her mother, Emilia explained. Though she was trying to keep a soft voice, Faith could see the evilness glisten in her tearless eyes. Feeling weak from the bombshell that had suddenly landed on Faith, all she could do was stumble back into the blue wall, staring at the people who in less then five minutes she would forever forget._

_Where she would forever be left alone in darkness, with a new life, a new set of memories … without everyone she loved …_

"_Please!" she cried. "I won't kill anyone, I won't!"_

"_We can't control your powers, Faith," Yeshua explained sadly. "You know we cannot do that."_

"_Then kill me," she begged. "Just don't leave me alone … I don't want to be alone."_

"_We …" he bit down on his lower lip, holding back the sorrowful feelings in his heart. "I'm sorry …"_

"_So this is it …?" she whispered, feeling her knees begin to give way under her weight. "You're just going to … your just going to throw me out … leave me alone? Forever?!" like a troubled child, she began to cry into the palms of her hands so hard that her head began to throb; her eyes began to feel sore. And there was nothing she could do about it._

* * *

"Leave me alone if you don't really care!" Faith yelled on the phone, feeling confusion as the memory entered her head. From being saddened at him leaving her, all she wanted him to do was exactly that. Right then she hated him; he had abandoned her; he had been the reason she had been turned into a Realian. "You left me alone before, you can leave me alone now!"

Before he could reply, she pushed down a button, hanging up the phone in a quick beep. Weakly, she fell to the floor, dropping the phone onto it behind her. She felt herself breaking as she wept into her hands, trying not to let the tears overflow her eyes. The pain she had felt during those few moments in the memory were so strong, so excruciating, she wasn't able to get them out of her mind.

"Faith?"

**Comments –** omg I really hate this chapter T_T damn crummyness. Thankies so much for the reviews btw~ I appreciate it soooo much and I PROMISE I'll make a good chapter next time! (I was uber unsure about what to do for this AND MY DMITRI –NESS SUCKS grrrrrrr [I has a feeling of just dumping him entirely for the time being T_T]) Anyhoo, I hoped you enjoy and thanks for reading. OH AND SURPRISE! There's a DEFINATE sequel to bitter sweet (unless you're bored of it – if so, OH WELL cause I may have already wrote the first chapter… XP). Thanks again!!~


	28. Say Your Prayer's

**|| Chapter [Twenty-Eight] ||**

**Say Your Prayer's**

Exhaling in his usual serious manner, if there were even a serious way to do so, Gaignun reached foreword for the brown folder. Rarely folders were used for meetings, but such a thing had been made so abruptly, it was understandable. He was even forced to phone Faith and tell her he wouldn't be home for a few hours due to the importance of it, though he was sure it was nothing more then a mere accident someone had or a complaint. Meetings like that had exactly the same dismal faces around the table, well apart from Rubedo's. He was acting his usual self, leaning back on the chair opposite to Gaignun. It wasn't just opposite places they sat either. Instead of having a high posture, with a straight back and a smart appearance, Rubedo was leaned back on the chair, his feet also on the chair too and his hands behind his head. Maybe Rubedo didn't know what was going on or he was just as bored as Gaignun was, expecting it to be something stupid that he just sat back and waited for the news before leaving to practise his shooting again.

The eyes of everyone, including even Helmer's stern ones were set on Gaignun as his fingers ran across the strange feeling folder that had the words "Confidential" printed on in giant red letters. Focusing his eyes down to the brown folder, he curled his finger under the opening, before swiftly opening it like it were a book. His eyes were met with strange numbers, ages, birthdays and all other things. It seemed there were prints of people's person information on the first page, and from what his eyes could gather in the short space of time there were about twelve people there, with their information to be seen. Frowning a little, Gaignun fingered the sides of the papers, muttering "I'm not quite sure I understand …" quietly, having not seen pages like that before in his life. He had seen pages with information but they didn't include birthday, mother and father, full name, residence and other things like. But as his eyes looked closer, he noticed another date; "Time of Death" or "Approximate Time of Death" for those who weren't found moments after they passed on. With his frown growing deeper, Gaignun shook his head.

Picking up on his confusion, Helmer spoke up. "Turn the page," he told him.

Doing so, Gaignun turned the white page over. Once he did his eyes were met with a sickening picture, making him gasp in disgust. Quickly, he turned his head to the side, pushing his mouth into his shoulder blade, feeling the soft fabric on his lips as he tried not to make a noise or vomit. He shook his head in denial, hoping he hadn't seen what he really had done. The picture was one of a young woman, about a year older then Faith. Her throat was torn up into a thousand slices of ribbons, leaving the flesh to dangle out of her throat like a morbid vent made from something soft rather then hard. The cuts were clean; though there were so many of them it was hard to see them all properly. Her throat, along with the jaw and cheekbones were covered in blood, which had begun to ooze down her chest at the time the photo was taken.

"Destiney Cheatham," Helmer answered for him as Gaignun struggled to look back at the picture. With a nudge from Rubedo, Helmer reached out for the folder, sliding it across the table to the redhead who had taken a sudden interest that was quickly lost once his eyes were set on the picture. He too turned his head away like his brother had done.

"Holy shit," Rubedo whispered under his breath.

"Language Jr …" Gaignun reminded him. _('Important meeting … that was uncalled for and you understand that.')_ he sent him the mental message.

"What the hell did they do?" Rubedo asked, ignoring Gaignun's message. "Freaking attack her with a chainsaw or something?! Look at the way her throat is ripped," he couldn't help but gag slightly, feeling a tingling sensation in his own throat from looking at the picture too long.

"The cuts are clean," Gaignun said, reaching and slipping the folder back under his eyes. He fought back the horrible urge to throw up and focused on the task at hand. He hesitated, but he managed to turn the page over, this time gaining a gasp from everyone in the room.

Gaignun forced his head to stay where it was; staring at the bloodied corpse in the bathroom of someone. The flesh had been torn all across the face; even the eyes had been slit. But in a strange attempt, someone had used thick thread to try and tie the wounds back together; either when the person was alive or dead. The eyes were slit to pieces, yet being held by the thick string that was caked in the red blood; the lips of the person were sealed shut with the same string; blood was running slowly from the holes used to make the string slide through. A devastating slit was on the side of the person's face, this too being stitched together. Instead of looking like a human, the person looked like a deformed rag doll dipped in a thick, gooey red substance and thrown into the bathtub of someone. There were evident signs of struggle from how the bathroom looked; the tiles were covered in red liquid, the liquid reaching down to the floor. The 'person' was lying in their own bloody bathtub, having more cuts and slices across their once beautiful body.

Unable to find his voice, Gaignun shook his head, opening his mouth to signal he was to speak in a moment, so no one could interrupt him. In disbelief, he shook his head firmly again; feeling his throat grow dry. With a newly trembling hand, he reached for the ice cold glass of water, gulping it down as politely as he could. Once he was refreshed, though he didn't quite feel it, he placed the glass back down, before looking at Helmer. "We are no forensic investigators," he told him, his voice weak and feeble. "Nor do we work for the police. Why have you shown me these?"

"The murderer of these people is none other then a woman," Helmer began. Immediately, Gaignun began to tremble, his heart beginning to pound. In the corner of his eye, he could see the stunned face of his brother, who knew everything about Faith. Both sat up, listening closely; worried about Faith. "These were committed some years ago, yet we cannot let her go. We have reason to believe she is in Second Miltia, perhaps even the Foundation."

"I see," Gaignun nodded, trying to keep himself cool, which he was more then good at.

"What does she look like?" Rubedo asked his eyes wide though it looked like he was more interested then anything. Thankfully, Rubedo too was doing well in containing his emotions of almost panic he was beginning to feel. He leaned foreword as Helmer pushed a button on the table, turning on the screens for the computer part of the table. Underneath where Gaignun's arms were, was the picture of the woman Helmer was after, on the screen. Pulling his arms away to set his eyes on the picture, he already heard a shocked gasp come from Rubedo.

And he struggled to contain his own.

Trembling fiercely now, Gaignun had to hold his hands together under the table as he stared at the picture with a face of concentration, as if he was trying to figure out who the person was so everyone else would know he had no idea who she was, when he knew he pretty much better then anyone else in the world. Bright blue eyes stared happily up at the camera, enjoying the attention. Her lips were curled up into the perfect seventeen-year old smile as she had her hand up above her head, waving. Her hair was platinum blonde, but unfortunately, her hair hadn't been dyed in quite some time. Three inches of her red and pink natural locks were on show in the bright sunlight. His heart skipped a beat, as Rubedo began to speak.

"Hey, she has hair like Faith," he smiled, trying to keep a casual look. Rubedo figured if they kept completely silent it would look like they were trying to protect Faith. Though he was trying to help, he felt his brother shoot him a mental glare before looking back at Helmer who was looking to Gaignun.

"Ah, the Realian?" he asked. "What model was she again?"

"Mass Produced 99 Series Observational Unit," Gaignun answered, hating how he had to use words like that when he _knew_ she was real. Gaignun knew_ everything_.

"I see," he nodded. "Well, about this … Gaignun only us in this room are to know about this, okay? Making something like this public will put the Foundation into panic. We'll look bad and the people will be frightened to leave their home. Can I trust you in keeping hold of the folder and to not distribute it to the media or public?"

"Yes, you can," Gaignun solemnly nodded, taking it with his hand. He was sure Faith would be more then interested to see the pictures; to help her refresh her memory, though that was the last thing on his mind. He needed to do something else before that. Standing up from his seat, he glanced back at Helmer. "If you do not mind I am taking the rest of the day off. For personal business."

"Haha, alright Gaignun," he smiled. "Just tell me one day who the lucky lady is, yeah?"

"Maybe someday," he tried to joke.

Tucking the folder under his arm, he walked his stiff body out of the room, hearing Rubedo's fast footsteps behind him. Once he had caught up with Gaignun, he spoke no words; instead he waited for them to leave the Office Building before speaking. What had happened was so stunning, so unreal it had shocked them both into a deep silence where both their mouths were dry, and both their hearts were pounding painfully.

"You gotta buy her some hair dye …" Rubedo commented as they left the building to the cold Foundation streets. He glanced up at his brother, looking at his pale face. Elbowing him playfully, he smiled as assuredly as he could. "She'll be okay. Buy her some hair dye and maybe some eye dye too. If you can, give her a new name."

"She won't like that," Gaignun muttered, though he was making a turn to the shop district; his heart heavy and his world in a strange blur. His head hadn't caught up with the news that the woman he loved would be in danger. That if they didn't plan their steps carefully she would end up a runaway from them all. And worst of all … Gaignun was the one she should be running away from … He was basically the one appointed the task to find her … When all Faith had to fear was her past just darting up in memories, what would happen to her know when it's all finally caught up with her? He found it unfair; she had already paid for her past mistakes through Albedo; why did this have to happen? And what had he done to deserve it too? He loved the girl … God he loved her more then anything and suddenly he had to take her away? Pure cruelty of the world… Was this around the same thing her mother had gone through?

Opening the door, Faith was first greeted with the cold blast of the autumn wind brushing against her skin, before the smile of Gaignun. He had a split second to take in what she looked like; her legs wrapped up in a pair of skinny dark blue jeans and her top a simple white one with abstract black butterflies on the side of it, making it look beautiful. And finally her pink and red hair was tied back, leaving the bangs to fall casually on her face. Around her neck was the four leaf clover they had chosen together; it looked more beautiful on her then it even did on the shelf. Just as he was about to greet her, she suddenly, happily yelled; "I made cookies, come on, come on."

She grabbed Gaignun by the wrist, the brown bag he held just banging gently into her hand; something cardboard jabbed into her flesh but she didn't care. Smiling happily, she dragged Gaignun into the cookie smelling house, forcing a little bit of laughter to leave his mouth. Shutting the door behind him, he breathed in deeply, happy in the warm room. He made a small happy noise. "Smells delicious, Faith."

"I know!" she happily smiled, helping him to pull the blazer off his body. Once the blazer was off, she hung it up before attacking his tie gently and hanging that up on top of the black blazer. "We were going to have the day together, but I figured this way was more fun. See? I'm like your wife! You're coming home to dinner though …" she screwed up her face. "… Damn I forgot dinner."

He laughed at her, loving her hyperactivity. He hadn't seen her so happy since they found out about their past connections, and even that didn't last too long. "My wife needs a wedding …" he seductively whispered as he placed a hand on her cheek. "She needs a ring …" his other hand slipped onto her left one; his index finger and thumb running up and down her wedding finger. "She needs the perfect day when her partner will propose," he smiled, kissing her cheek. "But her partner will always want to marry her, even if it takes some time … because he loves her … I love my wife-to-be …" he smiled, kissing her again.

Having turned a bright shade of red, Faith smiled. "Did she even say yes?"

"Well she's not backing away," he smirked. "And she did make me cookies …"

"Because everyone knows 'If you make someone cookies, that means your engaged' dun, dun, dun," she smiled.

"What on earth have you been eating?" he laughed, astonished by her childish behaviour.

"Cookie dough!" she smiled, bouncing up to her feet. He petted her on the head, letting her lead him into the kitchen. Sitting down at the table, he watched with his slightly sorrowful emerald eyes, wondering how he could break the news to her.

Once she placed the plate of fresh cookies onto the table, her eyes looked at the brown bag that he had set down beside his arm. "What's in the bag?" she curiously asked, breaking a cookie in her hand in two. A few crumbs fell down onto the black glass table, but she ignored them or hadn't noticed, breaking the one half of the cookie in half again before putting the piece of the chocolaty treat into her mouth.

He smiled at the way she ate before taking out a cardboard box from the bag, about the size of a match box. On the front was a picture of a light purple, almost lilac coloured eye. Leaning foreword, Faith looked at the box with her blue and gold eyes, before Gaignun slid them foreword to her. She reached out for them after putting the last bit of the cookie in her mouth. Chewing gently, she lifted the box up to her eyes; smiling widely.

"They're for you," he smiled, trying to act casual. "I thought that you might not like your multi-toned eyes; that they might cause too much pain for you. They're Eye Colourants."

"I love the colour!" she happily said, opening the box. In a small plastic container was a pair of purple contacts. Once placed on the eye, it would take just six hours for the colour of the eye to be dyed to the colour of the contacts. For quite awhile Faith had wanted to try them, and she could remember her mother wanting her to try them but a few years back there were a few dangers with them. Some people had turned blind due to the dye running into the pupil of the eye, thus staining it and eventually turning the person sightless. But now from new technology they were perfectly safe and the dye would last between 2 to six weeks, before reverting back to the persons original eye colour.

"These taste delicious by the way," Gaignun smiled; his face magically covered the terrible news he had been given just less then an hour ago. He reached for another cookie, eating it quickly having not eaten anything during the day. "Do you like them enough to use?"

"Yes, I'll use them," she smiled. "Thank you. I'll put them on tonight before we go to sleep." With her fingers she began to make a circular motion on the table, feeling the smooth glass under skin. "How did the meeting go?"

Struggling to swallow the cookie, he cleared his throat, feeling his heart beat a little bit faster then before. Biting his lip gently, he spoke in a monotone voice. "Perfectly fine. There was just a misunderstanding in Communication; nothing at all to worry about. Where did you get the cookie dough from?"

"Shion took me shopping!" Faith happily told him. "She came over a few hours ago when you left and offered to take me out while she had spare time. It was really sweet of her."

"Yes, it was," he smiled. Gaignun had an urge to offer to take her out to dinner, but he couldn't bring himself to ask her. Now it would be hard to take her out, what with the Foundation people wanting her in their hands. Hell he was meant to take her away, to them, even as he stood there. Even though she didn't know it, she was a fugitive and he was the one making her hide and runaway. She yawned like an exhausted child before leaning her head on her arms that rested on the table. He smirked as her hair was engulfed in her pink and red beautiful locks that soon he'd have to make her dye over. He needed to give her a new life, he needed to make her different then she was. If he could change her eyes and her hair, he could give her a job at the Foundation; a girl called Faith that hadn't been claimed as a Realian or had been a murderer.

It'd be a fresh start for her but he just needed her to somehow agree. That would be the difficult task … as he sat there watching her with all his attention, he knew how stubborn she was. He counted himself lucky for not having to convince her to have her eye colour dyed over.

"Tired?" he gently asked her, glancing at the clock that showed it was quarter to five, a strange time for her to be sleepy. As she nodded, he heard a sweet moan escape her throat.

"A little …" she added, remembering the crying fit she had whilst thinking about chaos and the constant travelling around the Foundation she and Shion had done not too long ago. Her lids began to feel heavy but she managed to keep her eyes open though all she could see was darkness, having her head tucked into her arms.

_With a hand that felt as cold as ice to Faith's warm cheek, he swung as hard he could into her face, slapping her harder then he ever had done before. A stinging pain immediately ran through her skin as she was slapped with his strong hand; a little cry left her lips as she was thrown to the wall with his other hand. A deep throb came onto her shoulder as it banged into the hard cream wall, having cracked but not seriously damaged. She heard a faint mutter come from Gabriel after he struck her, but before she had a chance to realize what he had said, his hands had returned to her body. Pulling her to press her body against his, she screwed her eyes shut. In an instant she was slammed into the wall, but he hadn't let go of her. Again the fifteen year old cried in pain that shot through her overly hot body, making her breathing deep and slow from the ache. "You're not going back there just so you can see your precious Master Gaignun!" he yelled down her ear, feeling her body trembling from fear and pain. "You think I cannot see through you? You're a whore, Faith! A Goddamn __**whore**__!"_

"_I wanted to go with Yeshua …" she whispered, feeing his fingers push painfully into her flesh._

"_I'm not stupid," he yelled. "I know you think a U.R.T.V is going to help you, but that won't happen!"_

"_I didn't … even know he was one until you said …" she whispered._

"_You know what they are," he gritted his teeth. "How do you know that?"_

_Gabriel was granted no answer and met with impatience in his heart, he threw the delicate girl down onto the floor. "We'll separate one day. Then you'll be able to die," he hissed. "I'd kill you myself if I was ever able to!"_

"You seem tense …" Faith told Gaignun as she passed him in the kitchen. It was half nine at night, they had finally ate after Faith cooked for them and the Eye Colourants were on the bathroom counter upstairs, waiting to be used. Placing a hand on his shoulder, she massaged it gently with her hand, bringing her face close to his. "Is … the person trying to get through …?" she asked; almost dreading the answer.

Feeling his tense muscles relax from her touch, he lowered his shoulders, leaning back into her hand. Happy with the reaction, she put her other hand on his other shoulder; the movement made his lips gently curl upwards. Since his fathers last appearance in the morning, he hadn't felt him for the rest of the day and that certainly wasn't what was on his mind. It was what would happen to her if his plans wouldn't go well, though part of him was telling him not to worry; that the plan was perfect enough for her to get away with it, even without her knowing what was really going on.

"No, it's not …" he answered with a gentle voice. Gaignun thought hard; was the place he had hidden the folder good enough to keep it out of her sight? He certainly hoped so. "He hasn't tried since this morning …" tension began to leave his heart as she continued to massage him, feeling his body relax under her fingers. She smiled happily, speaking with a quietly sweet voice.

"I was thinking about dying my hair …" she told him.

"Oh?" he asked for more information inquisitively. At least it would save him the job of having to convince her to dye her hair a shade.

"Yeah, I wanted to go blonde again," she smiled, standing to the tips of her toes so that she could lean the side of her face on Gaignun's shoulder. The material of his dress shirt felt warm and soft on her skin, making the smile widen.

"Blonde? I think something else would look more beautiful on you …" he had to play his cards right. Under no circumstances would he allow her to dye her hair blonde. If the roots were to come through, that would be it. She would be screwed to put it bluntly. He had already made promise to himself that he wouldn't put her in, he wouldn't tell the others who she really would and neither would Rubedo. And he was sure chaos wouldn't say a word to anyone either, though at that point Gaignun thought chaos knew less then he did. "What about brown?"

"Boring," she muttered, sighing a little.

"How about …" he paused, trying to think of a shade. "What about a deep wine red?" he asked, turning around to face her. He lifted her face up with a flick of her chin, before running his hand through his soft hair; letting his fingers curl around the red streaks in her hair that were a shade of bright red. "You'd look beautiful …"

"It would look nice," she smiled, blushing furiously as her eyes locked with his. Happily, she leaned her head on his chest; his hand still deep in her soft locks. His other hand went on her back, holding her close to him. Peacefully, they stayed like that, him savouring the moment more then she was. What would happen if they ever caught her? Would she too be forced to suffer the same fate all her victims had suffered?

Running his hand through her hair gently, he felt her body fall a little limp, her arms moved to go around his shoulders as she struggled to stay awake. "Let's go to bed …" he told her, kissing her gently on the head. "Chaos told me to tell you he was going to Miltia in the morning … he wanted you to go but I told him you would stay here …"

She felt the urge to argue with him, yet she could understand his meaning by his actions. Gaignun knew Faith would be safer without going there, and she needed to get things sorted out first, before even thinking about going out with the group. If she could, she wanted to go back to her family and see how her brother was doing. To see if he still despised her or not.

"Come on," Gaignun smirked after the moment of silence, sliding his hand under her body. She shivered furiously as he put his arms under her legs.

"Ah, Gaignun," she laughed as he picked her up with ease using his strong muscles. "You don't need to carry me!"

Ignoring her, he lifted her light body in a bridal way, before smiling at her. She stuck her tongue playfully out at him and he stuck his out after. "I love you too," he smirked.

Leaning his elbows on the cream terminal chaos worked on, he stared dreamily at the hologram of the screen in front of him that was above the keyboard. His stylus had dropped somewhere on the floor, unnoticed to his eyes. Being late at night, the bridge was completely empty on the Elsa, the rest of the crew having retreated to their cosy beds for the evening. Chaos too had also tried to settle, but his mind was working so quickly and continuously like a clock, he was unable to rest for the night. For once the calm boy was unable to sleep, but instead of expressing his emotions he moved to the Elsa's empty bridge, to breathe to himself in the cool space, enjoying the light silence around his ears. The cool plastic of the terminal was like ice to his skin that could be felt even under his cloths that covered every inch of the boy's dark tone.

Sitting there, chaos could feel the presence of his redheaded friend nearby, his ice blue eyes looking at him. Finally he could hear his footsteps echo through the rarely silent Elsa Bridge, drawing closer to chaos.

"Gaignun doesn't know," he began, disturbing the silence they were both in. Chaos's eyes were still glazed as he slowly nodded, unsure of whether it was a good thing or not. "Chaos …" Rubedo sighed deeply, remembering the sheer worry that was plastered in his brothers eyes as they travelled to the chemist that day, finding her the perfect Eye colour for her that she would like. Being in the background, an outsider, Rubedo was able to see the relationships between them all better then the three of them could. He could see the sheer love between his brother and Faith; he could see the care chaos felt for Faith, yet she obviously didn't return it more then with a kind of love a friend would give. It saddened him that his friend was going through it all, but he had to face the truth.

"She …" he gritted his teeth, angry for finding it hard to express his words. "Faith loves Gaignun. Chaos … don't talk to her about her past … she's …"

"She got caught, didn't she?" he asked already understanding as he tried not to think about her and Gaignun. He wasn't ready to accept it; not yet.

"No, not quite," Rubedo smirked. "More like … pretty close to it. Hell, if we're not careful she'll get caught. They wanna get her and it doesn't help she's _dating_ the leader of the Foundation, huh?" he tried to laugh a little. "She's gonna look different next time you see her. At least I hope so … stubborn isn't she?"

"Much like you," chaos said, putting his hands onto the cool plastic as he turned around to Rubedo; a faint smile on his face.

"Yeah, not as bad though!" Rubedo said, proudly hitting his chest. "I'm best at that."

Chaos smirked as he stood up from the terminal. He gave a warm smile to Rubedo, though the words Rubedo had given him weren't much to smile about at all. Now not only was he trying not to think about how much Faith loved Gaignun, though he was trying to deny it, he was worried about how much trouble she would get into if she would get caught. Even when they were together, in the past, he hadn't ever imagined her getting caught, though Emilia feared it the most.

But her opinion didn't exactly matter, what with her being dead; killed by her 'daughter's' eyes. That information still shocked chaos.

If Emilia was not Faith's mother then who in the world was?

Though he was the one meant to be having nightmares that night, he felt Faith's body move against his in a restless motion. Her stirring had awoken him and in the darkness he could see her tangled up in the sheets they shared, her thin legs wrapped tightly around the white sheets as if someone was trying to tie her up into a ribbon. Her breathing was deep and fast, he could feel her heart pounding against her chest as he put a hand on her. She whimpered in the dream she was having, her hands scrunched into tight fists. Putting a hand on her shoulder, he shook her gently, attempting to pull her from her nightmare. "Faith, Faith, wake up," he cooed, trying to be as gentle as he could. She shook her head, digging deeper into his chest, to hide from the nightmare. A cold sweat was appearing on her forehead, her skin was trembling against his bare chest, though the room was toasty warm.

Bringing her hands up to his chest, she pushed her fingers on the smooth skin of his hard chest. Even unconscious she could recognise and feel the breathing of him. Slowly, she came too, waking back up in the room. Gaignun smiled down at her as she lifted her head, suddenly pulling him into a deep, hard kiss; forcing her tongue into his mouth. She moaned as her hand slid down to his underwear, slipping under the waist band.

Before he knew it, her fingernail dug across his chest and in a split second a large incision had been made going across his olive skin. He cried out as he tried to pull away from her, but she kept slicing his numb body with cuts, letting his warm gooey red liquid empty out onto the bed sheets, her body and his skin Panic struck him as he realized he was to die in the arms of his love; in a Bittersweet dance of love and desire, mixed with sadistic actions and murderous ways.

"Gaignun!" Faith's voice suddenly ran through his head as he awoke from the horrible nightmare of her killing him in the ways she had killed the others. He lay in the bed, his body trembling slightly and the sheets tangled around his body. He didn't take second thoughts to his nightmare after hearing the distressed cry of Faith. She lay beside him, her arms tight around his chest as she nuzzled him desperately, her body shivering more then his.

"Sorry, sorry, sorry," she whispered, pulling closer to him. The moonlight shone in their bedroom, creating an ominous glow on both their bodies, letting him look down at her; the sheets tangled around her too. She too had suffered her own damned nightmare like him and he couldn't feel sorrier for her. He held her close to him, hushing her gently with a soothing voice.

"It's okay … its okay …" he told her.

"I had a bad dream …I didn't mean to hurt you … I'm sorry …" she whimpered. He looked at her; they had the same nightmare? God, it must have been worse for her … he held her tighter against him, soothing her as best he could.

"Shhh …." He whispered in her ear.

"I wanna go see Gabriel tomorrow," she told him. "Can we do that?"

"Tomorrow," he told her. "We need a good nights rest, don't you agree?"

"Yeah …" she nodded, pulling the sheets to cover both their bodies though it would take awhile for both of them to sleep as the after shock of the nightmare swept into their minds.

**Comments – **Okay, I strangely like the beginning but it kinda faded out near the end… hmmm … XP I hope you enjoyed it none the less and thankies for the reviews! I'm gonna be getting more xeno in the next few chapters SO DON'T WORRY. Thanks for reading and reviewing if you do~ I appreciate it very much and I hope ya enjoy! =D


	29. Twisted Reality

**Comments~** Credit goes to Gunzablaze1 for inspiring me with this chapter whilst we were rping! My character took a few too many Relaxation pills when she realized she was about to have an axiety attack, resulting in a peculiar trip to the hospital. Inspiration goes up to the point with the rag [I _loved_ that horrific-like scene so I had to use it ;] ]. Anyhoo, I was completely stumped to be honest about another chapter, so I just did this XP Sorry if its really confusing, I'm trying out different ways to make readers think [AND ITS FAILING DX]. Heehee, hope you enjoy~ =] Sorry for the complete suckage *hides* I HAVEN'T WROTE IN AGES, GO EASY ON ME DX

XD Enjoy~ =)

**|| Chapter [Twenty-Nine] ||**

**Twisted Reality**

_Excited ice blue eyes shot to the window in a split second, taking in the autumn trees as they flew past the car that was being driven quickly. Her hands happily tapped her thighs, as if a tune was being played in her head no one else could hear, as her eyes seemed to brighten and her face lit up; her lips twisted into a large smile, somewhat childishly as she continued to watch. The smell of hair dye emitted from her now deep wine red hair that had been dyed only a few hours ago. Her hair was tied back letting her bangs fall over the sides of her flushed face; a few strands had escaped the band and were gently curling around her neck, giving her hair an even more casual look. She was wearing a denim skirt that was loose around her legs with folds along the edges that came to her knees, her legs were tightly covered by green tights and she was wearing a beautifully simple white shirt with butterflies on the sides. On her feet were simple white sneakers; comfortable to wear. Outlined by her cloths, which was quite obvious to see, was a bump. Her stomach was a little larger then usual, sticking out from the rest of her almost stick thin figure. Her eyes continued to watch the outdoors as she was being driven somewhere; where she didn't know. She didn't even care; her mind was too fuzzy to even think about that. All she could remember was being taken out of her kitchen by the pretty white headed Yeshua and carefully put into the car as she moaned she'd rather play then have a car ride._

_The car bounced a little on the road, making a little 'oh' leave her lips as she put her hand on her stomach, grinning happily like a child. "Teehee, baby found that fun," she smiled rubbing her stomach gently. Her eyes were mischievous as she turned her head to the white headed boy sitting beside her, driving the car they were in. His eyes were concentrating on the road, but were strangely dull. However, Faith hadn't picked up on that; her mind was too blurred to notice how different his eyes were._

"_Yeshua …" she called childishly, hanging onto her words to make his name longer. Her fingers ran up the side of the window, holding delicately on the frame as she frowned a little, her head swayed gently before she smiled again. With her other hand she hit her thigh, putting her tongue on her lip. "I think …" she pointed at him, taking her hand off her thigh. "I think you are pretty."_

_The smile on his face was just as strange and unreadable as his eyes, though yet again she didn't notice. She took the smile as a happy thing, that she had complimented him. Giggling like a kid speaking to a boy they had a crush on, she felt her cheeks burn red a little. Again her mind became distracted as her palm found the cold glass of the window again, drawing her head to it._

_Faith bit her lip in a dizzy way, her actions were weird and not like they normally were. She moved a lot, like a fidgeting child; as if someone had drugged her. Swaying a little to the side, she made her teeth let go of her bottom lip. "Where is Gaignun?" she asked, blinking hard as she tried to get memories._

"_Look!" Yeshua excitedly said, gaining her attention. She looked at his finger that was pointing to the sky, making her look in that direction. "Birds, Faith. Look at the birds."_

"_Oh …" she became so distracted looking out the window screen she had forgotten her question, along with whatever messed up thoughts she had of Gaignun. Her mouth was parted as she started at the black shapes in the sky, dancing around with their wings. She couldn't help but let her ice blue eyes brighten in joy, and curiosity._

"_Have you dyed your hair?" he asked her, breaking his lock on the road to look at her._

_Faith looked at him, swaying again a little. A frown appeared on her face, something confused and angry at the same time. Her arm moved back, letting her hand grab her soft pony tail. Her hair was long enough for her to bring it to her ice blue eyes. Once she had brought her hair to her face, she stared at the red locks, her body moving slightly from the ride. Her other hand reached up, flicking her hair playfully as she screwed up her face. "I wanted blonde," she said like a disappointed child about to have a tantrum._

"_Like Alice?" he smiled. "With beautiful blue eyes and shinning blonde hair."_

"_I want to go to Wonderland!" she yelled excitedly, punching the air like a five year old. Excitement ran through her veins as she thought about going to such a wonderful place._

"_That's where we are going," he smiled, turning the car. Faith's eyes widened at this as she sat up in her seat, wanting to jump up for joy._

"_Will baby be able to come too?!" she asked, rubbing her stomach happily._

"_We're going for baby," he told her, his voice a little off with that sentence, but again Faith didn't see it._

_In a few minutes, Yeshua had driven them to a car park. Neatly, he parked the car in front of the white building. Faith's eyes looked around in curiosity as she died to get out and explore, smell the crisp air in her nose and feel the cold autumn sun on her skin. Getting out of the car, Yeshua quickly made his way to Faith's side, opening the door for her politely. He took her by the arm and wrist, holding her close to him as she attempted to move away. He was keeping strangely calm about the situation as Faith moved in a wonky line, unable to walk straight. Her eyes kept darting from one place to another, and if he had noticed she was acting drugged up, he didn't say anything. Though it was more then obvious she was. She had taken or someone had given her something._

* * *

"You brought him here?!" he yelled down her ear.

"You'd have killed me if I came alone,"

"You know I can't,"

"Good for me and all the others that will die, hmm?"

"Don't speak like that! You sick girl!" he yelled. Pain flooded her senses as she cried out, falling to the floor in a small heap after hearing a sickening crack.

* * *

"_Are you … putting that in my tummy?" Faith innocently asked the man dressed up in the white coat. There was a little bit of fear in her expression as she saw the long needle in his hand, being filled with a clear drug. She was sitting on a patients bed, her feet dangled off the edge as she looked around the plain white room, which she had told Yeshua all about how boring she found it. _

"_I'm going to inject it into the baby," he told her, running a hand through his brown locks. Yeshua stood to the side of Faith, rubbing her shoulder gently as to sooth her._

"_Will it hurt?" she asked him, hunching her shoulders as he drew close to her. She looked at the needle, bringing her lips into her mouth like a frightened child._

"_You'll feel a small pinch," he said, standing in front of her. He placed the tip of the needle on her skin, before pushing down and piercing it. She turned her head to the side, wincing slightly as he continued to push it in. Once he was satisfied, he emptied the liquid out into the baby growing in her stomach. Quickly he pulled the syringe back out, and began to put it away._

"_Good girl," Yeshua applauded in her ear, kissing Faith's cheek. She smiled shyly, moving her hands down to play with the sheets she sat on. "You're a good girl."_

"_Good girl," she repeated, bringing her hand to his face. Fascinated with the kiss he had given her on the cheek, she touched his soft lips with her index finger, smoothing over it as she smiled._

"_Very good girl," he said, kissing her fingers. Giggling, she brought her hands down and began to swing her legs, her toes just brushing across the cold, cream tiled floor. Her skin tingled from where his lips had touched her and she giggled yet again._

"_Did you give her the medicine?" the doctor asked Yeshua, looking at him so seriously he looked almost morbid._

"_I gave her those sweets, if that's what you mean," Yeshua answered in a tone that only the doctor would understand. After a minute he nodded, looking at Faith who was happily looking around the room._

_Sighing a little, he moved over to the white cupboard by the door. His hands fished around before finding what he wanted, and then he moved to the draw, taking out a fresh, clean white rag. It was a simple thing, probably used to clean wounds. In his hand was a brown bottle he had taken from the cupboard, and in a split second he had covered the rag in the foul smelling liquid he tried not to smell himself. Yeshua tensed up a little, soothing over oblivious Faith's shoulder even more in an attempt to keep her calm, though she already was._

"_Faith, may you do me a favour, please?" the doctor asked, standing near her. She looked at him with bright wide eyes, happy to agree with anything he said. "Can you smell this and tell me if it smells nice?"_

_A frown appeared on her face as she looked at the rag in his hand and something in her seemed to have clicked. Though her mind was still a daze she somehow figured something out; what it was, she didn't understand but she knew she shouldn't smell it. Shaking her head, she made a small look like a child would look at something they found sick. She tried to move back but Yeshua's strong hand was stopping her by pushing as gently as he could against her back. Her eyes looked at him, drenched in fear as she silently pleaded him for help._

"_Hey, it's okay," he whispered in her ear, wrapping his arm around her body. As he did so, he reached his other hand out to the doctor, putting Faith's head in his chest so she couldn't see. The doctor quickly wiped Yeshua's hand in the liquid using the rag, before turning away, leaving Yeshua to do it and make her smell the alcohol that would send her unconscious._

"_Honey," he whispered, lifting her head. She gave him a funny, confused look from the fact he called her 'honey'. "It's okay," he promised, bringing his hand just over her nose so she would be forced to inhale._

_When the scent came near her, something triggered stronger in her mind then before. Her eyes widened as she squealed, turning her head away as she breathed in a deep breath of clean air. "Faith!" Yeshua said as he held her, trying to turn her head. Every time he had his hand at her nose she quickly turned away, fighting against him. She put her mouth to her shoulder, breathing out into the fabric and quickly breathing in a breath to hold._

"_Help me," Yeshua told the doctor, who was watching with a quite amused expression._

_Obeying his orders, the doctor went to Faith, taking her by the arms as he held her back. Not wanting to do it, but needing to, Yeshua gently held Faith's head with his gloved hand with enough strength so she couldn't turn away. Putting his alcohol drenched hand to her face; he waited for her to take a breath knowing she wouldn't be able to fight against the inevitable. Once she exhaled suddenly, they both held tighter onto her as she squirmed but eventually she breathed in; not being able to stand the ache of her lungs as she tried not to breathe. The foul strong scent made her gag and choke as she felt her lids shutting against her will. In a second she had fallen limp in their hands, and soon Yeshua had laid her out on the patient's bed for the doctor. With a final glance to Faith, he left her and waited in the hall, leaving the doctor to do his work._

* * *

A metallic smelling liquid ran down her face quickly dripping down to her collarbone and was soon absorbed by her shirt. The pain was unbearable as her body began to shut down, making her go unconscious so she wouldn't have to deal with it as she fought. Her head hung, making her hair dip into the thick liquid that was on her face. Her body bumped as the sound of an engine rang through her ears, though she was too weak to lift her head and find out what it was. She was too weak to do anything, or even understand what was going on. Her mind kept drifting in and out of consciousness, making the situation far worse. All she knew was she was badly injured and the last face she remembered was Gabriel's. Other then that, her mind was blank, concentrating on keeping her body alive as she was driven away somewhere.

"It's okay, it's going to be okay," a voice close to her said; one she couldn't register though it was familiar. "I'm taking you to the hospital. You're going to be okay, Faith."

_

* * *

_

_Groggily, Faith woke up, her mind a bit of a blur as she was still drugged. "Ugh … Yeshua?" she called out before she could think of anything. She lay on the hard mattress; the white sheets were tucked neatly around her body. The room was light and white, just like it had been when they made her unconscious. The smell of the alcoholic substance still lingered in her nose as she struggled to push herself up. Her stomach was aching, and it felt weirdly empty though she didn't bother to look. Her eyes looked around the empty room, calling Yeshua again._

_Pulling the sheets off, she could see blood smudged on her once pure white shirt she wore. She frowned a little, her shaking and slightly numb hands moved down to her flat belly, feeling it for longs minutes. Shaking her head, she bit her lip. "Baby … baby?" she asked her stomach, wanting to know where it had gone. A feeling of loneliness came upon her as she stared at her flat stomach._

"_Your baby is in a better place now, Faith," a stern voice said to her. Turning her head quickly, she saw the doctor in the room, shutting the door quietly behind him. His emotionless blue eyes looked at her. "How are you feeling?"_

"_My tummy hurts," she moaned, leaning her back on the pillows as she whimpered. She screwed her eyes shut, trying to think of anything else but the pain but her mind was empty; there was nothing more for her to think about._

"_The pain will go away shortly," he told her, moving to the end of the bed. He picked up the chart, looking over it carefully._

"_Can … babies be born in the first few months?" she asked him, her hand moving back to stroke the pillows._

"_No," he answered quickly. "We couldn't let you have your child because of the powers you posses. We are unsure whether these are genetic, because of your family member Robert Ackermann. I hope you can understand that. We did what was best for the world."_

"_Best … for the world …" she repeated, looking down._

"_Yes, just like this," he said, moving down with a new syringe in his hand. Her eyes widened as he took her hand, sticking the needle painfully into her flesh._

* * *

"No, no, no!!" Faith screamed at the top of her lungs. Her cry in the small hospital private room grabbed Gaignun's attention straight away, making him almost leap from the chair he was sat in. He was dressed in his usual white shirt and black trousers, though he looked untidy. His face looked sleepier then usual, as if he had rarely slept over a long period of time. Faith's half sleep half awake mind had managed to make her legs kick the thick white sheets onto the floor, tearing them off her body. She was wearing her denim blue skirt, green tights and white shirt, though her shirt was drenched in dark red blood. Her wine red hair had become a mess from her squirming and a large bandage was around her head; that too was stained in fresh blood.

"Faith, calm down!" Gaignun said, grabbing her wrists. She continued to scream, her eyes still shut as she squirmed, fighting now against Gaignun and nothing at all but her nightmare. His hand quickly tore off her to press the red button above her bed, telling a doctor that he needed help. The sound of the machine that reordered her heart went faster as her heart pounded quicker.

Trying to keep her under control before she hurt herself, Gaignun went on the bed, straddling her waist as he leaned his weight gently on her. He took her hands, holding them down on the bed as a doctor ran in. "Calm, calm, breathe …" he whispered, leaning down to kiss her cheek tenderly.

"What happened?" the male doctor asked.

"She went into a state of panic, I believe," Gaignun said, helping to calm her body down. His closeness and his voice had soothed her, making her arms gently fall limp and her legs stopped kicking. He had learned the trick from his brothers, Albedo and Rubedo. As young kids, Albedo often had nightmares and he'd wake up in a panic, crying out for Rubedo even though he was still partially unconscious. To soothe him Rubedo would get as close to him as he could, and being his twin he was allowed to do such a thing. Proof that it worked was that Albedo would stop crying out, and he would slowly wake up, a little dazed. Though Rubedo would say the only reason he held Albedo down was because his yelling would wake up everyone, Gaignun knew it was because he wanted to calm him.

Unexpectedly, just as Gaignun had gotten off the bed, her lilac eyes shot open in a distress. She began to breathe quickly as her heart raced again; Gaignun was quick at the side of the bed. She stared at him with wide eyes, which were full of fear. She was confused; more then confused about where she was, what was wrong and why Gaignun was there. "Gaignun?" The last thing she could remember was that horrible doctor sticking a needle painfully in her hand. Looking at her side, she could see a tube attached to her, digging deep into her skin to get to her vein; just where the doctor injected her.

"Yeah, it's me," he smiled happily. "Shh, its okay, it's okay. You're in hospital; you had an accident. Are you okay?"

"They killed our baby!!" she screamed, letting the tears run down her face. Everything in her dream suddenly made sense; who's baby it was and the reasons as to why she could've been drugged. Chaos didn't want her to have Gaignun's baby, and so killed it; but how did she have a lump already? And could chaos really be capable of such a thing? Gaignun stared at her, wide eyed; not understanding what she was talking about. "Our baby!"

"Are you sure you weren't dreaming?" he asked her, trying not to be upset by her panicked and hopeless face. She looked down at her cloths, and then back up at Gaignun. As she spoke, she pushed herself to sit up properly, not feeling hurt or ill.

"I'm sure!" she said, looking him straight in the eye. "I had my red hair; I was wearing what I'm wearing now! Chaos drugged me and took me to the hospital and let them kill our baby!"

"Faith, you've been in the hospital all this time," Gaignun told her. "Gabriel pushed you down hard against the bed, making you split your head open. You've been unconscious for three days."

"No!! I'm sure they took our _baby_!!" she screamed again, her voice cracking.

"You may have had memories blended into present events," the doctor said, trying to keep the room calm. "It happens to everyone who has had injuries like you."

"But I slept with chaos years ago and I'm sure I didn't get pregnant!" she yelled. Gaignun's eyes widened at her words, unsure of how to take it. Shaking his head he forced whatever thoughts he had from his head. Yes, it may have been years ago; that didn't matter. All that mattered was that Faith obviously didn't love him; she loved Gaignun. "I didn't get pregnant!" she repeated in an almost hysterical way.

"Master Gaignun, may I test Faith to see if she is pregnant?" the doctor carefully asked.

"How will that help this situation?" he asked him, gently brushing Faith's hair.

"On an unconscious level, Faith may realize she is pregnant," he explained to Gaignun calmly. "Hence why she had such a nightmare during what happened," Faith shot a look to Gaignun, silently repeating that it was real. "Do you understand?"

"We … haven't been together long," Gaignun slowly said, finding it hard to believe his child could actually have started growing in Faith. "How could you know she's pregnant so early?"

"It doesn't take long for an egg to fully fertilize," he told him. "I'll give you two a few moments alone before I start the test."

The doctor slowly left the room, leaving fast breathing Faith to look at Gaignun. A sweat had appeared on her forehead as she stared, her legs feeling slightly numb from not moving. "Are … you mad?"

Gaignun quickly turned his head to her, looking shocked. His face turned soft as he placed a hand delicately on her cheek, making her skin tingle from his touch. "No, I never would be. I'm just … so very confused."

"That makes two of us," she smiled.

"Tell me about … this … dream you had," he told her, looking deep into her now lilac coloured eyes. "Once you do, I can tell you what happened."

"Alright," she nodded eager to find out what had happened. "I was … in the car … acting weird, like he had given me a drug. I couldn't think right, I acted like a kid … he took me to the hospital saying we were going to Wonderland," she cleared her throat, the words becoming harder to say as she went on. To calm her, Gaignun leaned foreword, putting a hand behind her head, his lips gently pushed against her cheek from time to time, helping her along. "At the hospital the Doctor gave me … the baby a medicine. It really hurt …" a tear ran down her face that he kissed away; the salty taste lingered on his lips. "They, they held onto me, forcing me to smell something that knocked me out. When they did they did something to the baby," hysteria bubbled on her words. "I woke up and my stomach was flat! I was looking exactly how I do now, but without the blood! They took our baby!"

He hushed her, tucking her hair behind her ear as he brushed his lips against hers. "Faith, you may not even be pregnant. It was just a dream … just a horrible nightmare …" he assured her as more tears began to flow down her cheeks. "Three days ago, the day after you put those Eye Colourants on, I went out to buy you a hair dye."

She frowned as memories began to quickly seep into her mind.

"_Oh nice colour, Gaignun!" she happily said, kissing him on the cheek. "Wow, you sure do know what's nice. Sure you're not gay and secretly trained to be a hair stylist?"_

"_I hope not," he smiled. "Otherwise that would be a few problems for us both. And I'd be a terrible gay; my heart stolen by a woman rather then a man."_

_Faith happily smiled back. "Okay, I'll put it on!"_

"Then we went to see Gabriel, like you had requested," he continued. "Whilst we were there I stayed and spoke with Damion, speaking about how we used to know each other. I'm sorry … I shouldn't have left you alone with your brother …" Gaignun said, leaning his forehead on hers.

Opening her mouth to speak, the creak of the opening door echoed through the room, disturbing their little bit of privacy. Gaignun was the first to turn around, leaving Faith to stare foreword, her eyes glazed. The words that the doctor wanted Gaignun to wait outside rung through her ears as she suddenly felt numb; she couldn't even feel the kiss properly that he planted on her lips. Gulping, she breathed deeply, unsure of whether there would be a baby inside of her or not. If there was, then … what would she and Gaignun do? And if there wasn't did that mean her 'dream' was right? If it even were a dream. Pondering on it, she thought the doctor could be right; her past memories could have blended into current events, hence why she in her nightmare had her cloths she wore and the hair it had been dyed. Her mind was in such a blur from the attack of Gabriel, it was understandable, though confusing.

"I'm going to get these tested, Mrs Kukai," he told her, heading for the door with his things in hand he had collected. Faith turned her head to him in a slight alarm.

"Mrs Kukai?!" she repeated, her eyes widened.

"Yes, the name Master Gaignun gave me," the doctor said, getting the door open with a press of a button. "Faith Kukai."

"Ah … sorry …" she whispered as he left, soon to be replaced by Gaignun.

Faith sighed, standing to her feet as she embraced him, clinging hard onto his shirt. A little taken back by the sudden hug, he smiled, holding her just as tightly. "How are you feeling? Does your head hurt?"

"Its fine …" she answered, nuzzling his chest affectionately. "I'm … I'm scared … Of the baby and of what I dreamt …"

"It was just a dream …" he told her. "Don't worry about that yet. We haven't got the results."

* * *

With Gaignun on another floor of the hospital, grabbing drinks and something for Faith to eat, she quickly jumped to her feet. Searching through the bag that was on the table by her bed, her shaking fingers quickly found the blue phone she was looking for. Sniffing, she tore the wire from her hand, gasping from the slight pain as she removed the drug that was being given to her. Blinking, she began to dial a number as she paced around the room, getting her numb legs used to walking again.

"Hello? Faith?" the concerned voice of chaos came into her ear. She nodded, and as if he could see the nod, he spoke. "I've been so worried about you. Gaignun told me what happened … are you alright?"

"I'm fine," she answered in a voice of velvet. She kept a little smile on her face as she continued to speak in a soft tone. "And how are you, Yeshua?"

"I'm … good," he answered, slightly stunned that she had used his old name.

"Have I ever taken an overdose?" she asked curiously. "Or some drug?"

"Well …" there was a long, readable pause that made Faith suspicious. "I believe you had done, yes. We had to take you to the hospital. You were in such a daze I'd be surprised if you manage to remember it properly. You had to have your stomach pumped."

"Where they empty everything inside it, right?" she asked; thinking about her stomach being emptied of the small, developing child.

"Yes," he answered; his voice a little shaky.

"Okay!" she happily said. "Hey, I have to go now. I'll try to speak to you later. Oh, chaos, one more thing."

"Yes?" he asked.

"You still haven't taken me to Wonderland," she said in an intense, almost fierce voice. The sound of a gasp could be heard, but she cut it short by hanging up the phone. A little smug smile came on her face, knowing chaos would now be forced to tell her the entire story. Still, she couldn't get rid of the anger she felt towards him and how sick he was for being the reason there was a lost baby; if her dream had been right, that was.

Faith put the phone back in the bag just in time as Gaignun came into the room. He carried a coffee in his one hand, two chocolate bars in the other along with a Chinese Chicken wrap for Faith and pushed against his chest was a bottle of coke, also for her. Gratefully, she smiled at him, helping with the things as she put them on the table. The first thing she did was take a drink of the coke, feeling great as the pop ran through her slightly weak body, soon to be putting needed sugar in her veins. She could feel the strain being unconscious for so long had on her body; it was a pain to walk and her heart almost felt numb. It was like she had slept too long and she didn't really enjoy it. Even her mind didn't feel right, and that was probably from the hit. She loved how Gaignun didn't allow them to use Nano Technology on her wound; he understood her strange dislike towards it.

"The Doctor wants you to be resting," he smirked knowing his words wouldn't have any effect on trying to convince her rest.

"I've been resting for three days Gaignun," she almost whined, beginning to take off the plastic wrapper that covered the wrap. "Have you been here the entire time?"

"I had to leave a few times when emergencies had arisen," he explained to her, before nodding to a laptop bag leaning on the end of the bed. "Other then that I've been here, working and waiting for you to wake up."

"You're … sweet," she smiled. "Bet I have a lot to catch up on, don't I? Three days sleeping … damn that's long enough for D-Day start and end."

"Happy thoughts," he smirked.

"Yep!" she nodded sarcastically.

The door opened, drawing the couple's attention. With a few words, Faith was being dragged out in the hallway, to speak to the doctor in private; her heart pounding quickly against her chest as she stole one final glance to Gaignun. He waited, slightly anxious of what the doctor was telling her. Just as soon as he sat down on the end of the bed, he heard her screaming, making his eyes widen. Worried, he quickly darted out the room to find Faith pacing from one wall to the other, her feet quick and her body shaking. A sweat had already appeared on her forehead and just as Gaignun came out into the hall, she was facing him, her hands on his arms.

"It was here! It was here! They took the baby here!" she yelled, her eyes widening. He opened his mouth to try and calm her, but she yelled again before he had a chance to speak. "The room is here, Gaignun! It's here, there's going to be some proof! I need your help to find it."

"Faith I think you need to calm down …" he whispered.

"No!" she yelled. "Trust me, it's here. I know it, it was real, okay? It was _real_! Help me find it, Gaignun. You have to help me find it."


	30. Never Ending

**|| Chapter [Thirty] ||  
****Never Ending**

**[C].o.m.m.e.n.t.s:::** I UPDATED BITTER SWEET! Oh my God, how long has it been? A month? MAYBE TWO? God I hope its only one XD I'm so sorry it took forever to update this AND I'M EVEN MORE SORRY IT'S A CRUMMY CHAPTER. I've just been so distracted with a few things lately and I haven't had the time, I'm just so happy I've finally got a chapter. Sorry if I've disappointed you with a bad one, I do hope you like it any way. AND I HOPE NO ONE FORGOT ABOUT IT XDXD

Thankies to Dee bear for letting me use her name … even though she doesn't actually know about it yet … but meh, love ya xP ENJOY AND DON'T WORRY: Chapter Twenty Nine will be picked back up propery … and oh my god I'm really regretting putting this up, I'm so sorry guys.

Teeth almost chattering, her skin shivering furiously and her blood cold around her body, she rubbed her bare arms, pulling her knees up a little. "It's so cold …" she breathlessly whispered, not having the energy to actually talk properly. All she could think about was the ice cold air biting at her flesh; winter was coming faster then she had expected. Still, it felt good. It felt good to be sitting on the hospital roof, to be able to look down at the lit up streets of Miltia during the night. Faith was still wearing her skirt, tights and shirt, but there was a happy glint in her eyes. The dream had been what she expected; just a dream, though she could feel something else. There was something bigger, something important that was still looming in her mind, but she wouldn't allow her to think of it. They had been through so much, enough to make her head blow up, and she didn't want anymore. Whatever it was could wait; so she kept it hidden in her mind, locked in a chest; the key no where to be found. She wanted time with Gaignun, as much as Gaignun wanted time with her. Chaos was right; she had merely had a stomach pump at a younger age, the baby was just part of a cruel nightmare her mind had given her. Or so she wished to believe. She _forced _herself to believe it, told it to herself so many times that it was real; that there was no other explanation; her mind believed it.

Gaignun slipped to the side a little, moving closer to her as he wrapped his arms around her body. For a few seconds she didn't respond and stayed as still as a statue. There was something on her mind as he looked at her gems in curiosity. The wind blew gently, making her locks dance in the wind, which were about the only things moving on the woman. And finally, after the seconds that felt like minutes, she leaned her body on his, collecting his warmth. "The stars are pretty, don't you think Faith?"

"Yeah …" she whispered, not looking up at them. "Gaignun …" she suddenly said, feeling tears prick her eyes. She glared slightly, stopping them from leaving. She would be dammed if she let herself cry. It was the last thing she would do. "I'm sorry."

"You have no reason to apologize, Faith," he smiled, leaning down to gently nuzzle her soft hair. "It's okay, like I said before."

* * *

"Please …" she begged through the sobbing, through the tears that wouldn't stop falling down from her eyes. Her shaking arms rested on the table in the female room of the Elsa; her fingers twisting themselves to the point they were close to snapping. Opposite her was another red head, his own hands close to hers and his own arms trembling. Ice blue eyes looked at her as she stared down, whimpering and sobbing quietly. Faith was trying with all her might to keep it back as her body was engulfed in cold. Seeing her furiously shivering, the raven headed man looked to her with concerned eyes.

Before he had noticed his beloved shivering, he was looking down to the floor, leaning his back against the wall as she gained the information he already had. He wouldn't look at her, unable to see her face crumble as she got the news. Stressfully, his hand was against his mouth; thumb and index finger separated to fit around his chin. Once his brother had told her, he shut his eyes straight away, furrowing his brows when she began to cry. Now he was going to one of the beds that had been given to her. With slightly trembling hands he took the chocolate brown and white stripped blanket that matched the sheet covers. Still unsure of what else to do, he put the blanket across her shoulders, wrapping it around her chest as he slid to sit down beside her. Tenderly, he put his hand on her thigh; trying to provide some sort of comfort.

_('You look like a damm doll!!')_ Rubedo's voice echoed through Gaignun's mind. _('At least do something more. You talk to her about getting married when you suck at comforting her!')_

_('I don't know what I'm supposed to do, Jr,') _Gaignun replied with a dull voice as he continued to look at Faith's red and swollen face, covered in damp tears. _('Besides, I'd have thought you would be more upset then she would be.')_

_('Kirshwasser. She was a Kirshwasser, don't forget that, Gaignun,')_ Rubedo said, looking to Faith as well.

"Not true," she whispered, shaking her head. "It's not true … Please tell me it's not true."

Sighing, Gaignun moved a hand to stroke her hair gently, covering his gems with his lids. "It is true, Faith … I'm so sorry …"

"It's impossible! Albedo can't be dead! He's told me ever since I was a kid. He can't die!" she yelled, still looking down with a face mixed with dismay and denial. From her words both brothers blinked. Gaignun lifted his head and looked at her with confused, shocked eyes and Rubedo did the same. The girl was like a little chest of secrets, many precious secrets and it seemed the trio were the keys; Rubedo, Albedo and Gaignun. Gaignun especially, getting most of the memories from her head.

After a long pause of silence that Faith didn't notice, Rubedo managed to shake his head. Clearing his throat, he blinked one final time and spoke. "When you were a kid?" he repeated.

"Did you know Albedo as a child, Faith?" Gaignun asked; brows rose as he looked at her with a horrified expression.

"I wanted a friend," she whispered. "I've always wanted a friend, Gaignun …" she whispered; more tears pricking her eyes. "I was so Goddamn sick of being the murderer, the one with the dark heart; why do you think I killed mother?! He didn't seem to care. He was my friend."

"Your friend?" Gaignun almost scoffed; his father's personality seeping into his to the point the tears on Faith's face froze. She lifted her chin, staring at Gaignun. Or more precisely, staring at Dmitri. "How was he a friend when he hurt you? When he damaged you as a Kirshwasser? That man is not your friend: never has been and never will be, Faith. Something has always been wrong with Albedo, and he will never care for you."

The sharp slap echoed through the walls, making Rubedo stare in astonishment. Faith's hand mark was red on Gaignun's now stinging cheek. His head was turned to the side thanks to her strength, and his eyes were wide like his brothers. His father had quickly slipped from his mind, replacing his personality with his own only. Angry lilac gems stared at him, her hand shaking.

"We do not speak ill of the dead," she hissed. "Nor do we try to assume what we do not know." And with that final growl she left the room quickly.

* * *

A blade, stolen from the kitchens was held tight around her fingers, shaking as her body shook. Tears still quietly streamed down the young woman's face as she sat down on the floor. The room she was in was small and cramp, in the depth of the basement. The only light came from an old fashioned, dying bulb dangling above her head; dust cascading from it. The pieces of dust looked almost like miniature fly's floating about in the air, illuminated by only the yellow light. Oak shelves surrounded her; her back leaned against the only bit of wall space there was, the cold seeping into her veins quickly. The shelves were crowded with all sorts of random junk from plates and cups to pens and paper; things Faith didn't care about nor need to care about. All she cared for was the blade in hand, and her left wrist.

Breathing deeply, gulping every now and then, the trembling woman put the edge of the blade to her skin. Near the blade was a small scar from where Albedo had once slit her wrist. Inhaling deeply, she pushed the sharp metal into her flesh, feeling it pierce as a stinging pain ran up her arm, to her shoulder, and even at her fingers. Groaning, she pushed it in deeper, before making a quick slice and pulling the blade from her flesh. From her wrist, going down to her forearm was a large incision, seeping quickly with her blood. The warm liquid quickly covered her left arm as she began to breathe deeper; her fingers letting go of the blade as she felt weak.

Leaning her head on the wall, she half shut her eyes. Ignoring the stinging as best she could, she focused on the sweet scent of blood lingering in her nose and the warm of it on her skin. She could feel the liquid dripping from her arm, and when she gave a small glimpse to her wound she could see that her fingers were drenched, along with her hand and arm. It was a bloody mess thanks to her piercing a vein dramatically. Her energy slowly left her body, like it had done many times. Many times she had been in a situation where she was falling into unconsciousness; scared for her life. But this time, there was no fear. She just sat back and accepted what was coming.

Concentrating so much on the warm blood rather then the pain, she didn't even notice the door slowly open. A small crack of the outdoor light came into the room, which was quickly covered by a shadow. Finally, when she heard the click of the door shitting behind, she looked up.

A sigh left the person's lips as she stared. "This isn't healthy for you."

"It won't kill me …" she sighed, looking back at the blood. "Nothing can kill me."

"I know," he said, moving down to crouch beside her, inhaling her intoxicating aroma. Her scent was a mixture of lilies and roses, with a sickening scent of blood he could easily pretend wasn't there. His beautiful eyes that she had once been so found of stared at her. They tried to avoid the blood but couldn't help a small glance at it now and then.

"What are you doing here, Yeshua?" she asked wearily, as if his appearance was a trap.

He sighed deeply. "I'm … not quite sure."

"That's helpful," she scoffed, turning her head to him. She sighed deeply, moving slightly as the pain turned into a dull sting. Chaos watched, unsure of what to do.

"If you run out of blood they're going to get suspicious," he told her, remembering the fact the government were after her. If someone reported a young woman that didn't have blood yet was still living there would be a full on investigation. They weren't that dumb to not notice the girl in the picture was the same woman.

"They can get as suspicious as they wish," she sighed. "It has to come out sooner or later. Gaignun especially must know."

There was a long pause as chaos's eyes glazed over, his mind deep in thought. "Gaignun knows of me and you, Yeshua yet he will not pry."

"There is nothing to pry into," he quietly said, sitting down on the cold floor properly. "It was years ago, as you said, and anyway; you don't have all your memories back properly … not yet."

"I'm done with the memories," she said, looking down at her arm that was still heavily bleeding. Her body had gotten used to such damages, poundings and other near-death experiences that she could stay awake. God knew how much blood was left in her; a normal person would have been dead already. "That was then, this is now and right now I'm concentrating on me and Gaignun. He's my only concern."

She didn't know it, but her words were like a stab to chaos's heart. Clearing his throat, he managed to slowly push himself up to his feet. His eyes were still attached to her as he stood, his voice quiet as he spoke. "At the dive … you told me you were going to give Albedo your life in exchange for Gaignun to live. Did you know you couldn't die then?"

"No, I didn't know," she answered, looking away from them as the pair were engulfed in a dark silence. She sighed deeply. "Do you see what I mean by I'm done with the memories? We could have been good friends if I didn't remember; you protected me and were at my side at the beginning now it's always strange and hard."

He sighed, shutting his eyes. "Remember or not I wouldn't have been able to keep it in. And even though you remember, I still care for you and I respect your decision about Gaignun. Nothing will stop me from protecting you because at the moment you're my only concern."

With that he was quick to leave the room, leaving Faith to bleed on the floor. Groaning, she pushed herself to her feet, kicking the knife under a shelf. With her good hand she grabbed her white jacket from the floor, and wrapped it around the wound on her wrist; covering all traces of blood. As the fabric began to stick to her flesh, the pain worsened and she couldn't help but utter a small cry before biting her lip to hold it back. Her feet moved quickly as she left the room, and travelled to the Medical room; not too far from where she was.

"Faith! There you are," Gaignun's voice echoed deep in her ear, making her shiver and freeze on the spot. Slowly she turned to him, seeing his lips widen in a smile that she returned. "Where were you? Are you alright?"

"Fine, Gaignun," she smiled, putting her arm behind her back casually. "Perfectly fine. I'm sorry I ran off earlier."

"It's okay," he smiled, leaning down to kiss her nose lovingly. "As long as your fine, everything is okay."

She nodded. "Yeah … I just need to go do something …"

* * *

"_Damm__ it!!" she cried through her tears that were drowning her face. "Ahh … tch … that really hurts!"_

"_Then fucking do it yourself, ungrateful brat!" 'The other hand of God' growled deep into the fifteen year olds ear, making her shiver. She shut her eyes tighter, upset from her brother's yelling. _

"_You're pushing the needle in too deep!" she hissed through the pain. "Stop it! You're not meant to even be using thread!"_

"_Thread's all I fucking have, so unless you want to go explaining this to mother I suggest you shut your trap," he growled louder then before, digging the needle into the torn flesh just to create more pain for her. In reaction she cried out, her flesh already tender._

"_Please, just take me to the hospital!" she begged, feeling her head go dizzy from the pain and blood loss. "I won't do anything to anyone, please."_

"_After last time you were there?" he asked, raising a brow. "I don't think so."_

"_But Gabriel, it hurts!!" she whined._

_The fifteen year old Faith was seated on the couch, her fingers clinging onto the cushions tightly; so tight her knuckles were plastered white. So many tears had left her eyes over the short amount of time, the hair near her face was damp and her neck was drenched in the fat tears that would never stop. Her eyes were screwed shut, her body leaning foreword slightly as pain flooded her senses. Her thing leg was drenched in blood; a bloody left hand was continuously wiping it clean, the hand belonging to Gabriel. Below her knee was a large incision, almost in a semi-circle shape. Her latest victim had a fighting streak in her; the woman named Destiney Cheatham was no pushover. She had grabbed whatever she could whilst been fought by Faith and in the end; somehow, barbed wire had gotten into her grip. She dug it into the leg of Faith, using both her hands and tore up her flesh that was still, miraculously, attached to her. Now, Gabriel had the 'wonderful' task of seeing to his sisters wounds. With nothing more then thread in the house, or so he said, he got to work, putting Faith through more pain then the injury Destiney Cheatham had given her._

_He worked carefully, quickly with her wound. Every so often he would look up to his sister, checking her face; sometimes giving her a squeeze of her hand with his bloody one but that would be it. After ten minutes of pain, the door opened but neither of the siblings had noticed the person enter until they spoke._

"_Maser Gabriel! What in the world have you done to Miss Ackermann?!" Damion's shocked voice gasped; his eyes wide. Gabriel responded in an irritated groan and Faith's hazy, pain filled eyes looked up to Damion._

"_My … newest …w-was …strong …" she said through gritted teeth. Damion stared before looking to Gabriel._

"_Why don't you take her to the hospital?" he questioned with a raised brow._

"_You wanna' explain to them how she got the wound, and why she ain't dead?" Gabriel countered angrily, making Damion stare in silence. "Didn't think you did … Mother can't find out about this, Damion."_

"_I will not spread the word, Master Gabriel," he promised._

* * *

"I slept all day, I woke with distaste," Faith gently sung to herself after shutting the empty medical room door behind herself. She began work on her arm; ignoring the pain as she stitched her wound together. "And I read, I read, that the difference between the sprout and the bean … it is a golden ring …"

As she worked, her mind flooded with thoughts of Albedo; was he really dead? Would he ever come back and did that mean she could die too? They were just questions she couldn't answer, nor did she want to. She didn't want to see that madman again, but apart of her would miss him. He was part of her life, her only life at one point and she knew it would be hard.

Once she had done and had cleaned up the blood, something wrapped around her waist. The sudden tingling sensation caused the girl to jump out of her skin but she couldn't move; the arm around her holding her tight to the warm, that was breathing gently. "G-Gaignun?" she questioned, still stunned.

"Yeah," he whispered in her ear, kissing it gently. She giggled slightly, asking what he was doing but was granted no reply. After a few peaceful minutes he kissed her ear once more. "We're heading home and I've taken time off work … just me and you …"

"And nothing will get in the way, no memories, no stupid nightmares, no nothing," she smiled happily, putting her hands on his arms that were wrapped around her.

"You finished my speech, now what am I mean to say?" he asked playfully. She laughed, turning around to him; his emerald eyes having not yet noticed the wound on her arm.

"Whatever else is in your heart," she smirked, poking his chest gently. "But … before you do, I need to tell you something about me."

Slowly, she let her wounded arm come into his eye sight. "I know why Albedo was fascinated with me when I was younger. Why he beat me. Gaignun, I can't die."


	31. Bleed

**|| Chapter [Thirty-One] ||  
Bleed**

Her ivory shaded hand shot out in front of her in the darkened Park area onboard the Durandle. Lips curled up into her refreshing, contagious smile she let beads of cold water fall onto her long fingers that continued in an almost never ending cycle. The water would fall from the steel gaps in the beautiful black fountain, splatter on the bottom to meet the rest of the drops that had formed together into a clear substance at the bottom of the Fountain, which was close to the young's knees, and get sucked back in to only fall and repeat the cycle. White and pale blue lights shone on her thin, porcelain body, outlining all of it in the night version of the Park where only she stood. Leaning all her weight on one leg, she pushed her body closer to the Fountain in the centre of the park, covering up to her knuckles with the slightly cold water. It felt soothing against her clammy skin, and her wine locks were soon covering her lilac shaded eyes as she continued to happily watch the cycle. Her eyes were slightly faded in their colour and bags were slowly forming underneath them showing how sleepy she was. Hints of blue and stunning gold were shooting through the lilac. How long had it been since she put in those Colourants? A few weeks maybe? Yeah a few weeks. There was even a line on her arm where she had shockingly slit open her wrist to prove to herself and to her love she could not die. Still, it was just a scar now. No injuries. No more blood.

But a scar was a scar. Proof of her existence; proof of her everlasting life. How she would watch others die and perhaps participate in their death. It was like a warning, a foreboding sign that one day she could turn as psychotic and mad as her old Master and some day loose her mind.

A shiver ran through her spine, swirling through the gaps in her bones from that horrible thought. It was like the shiver was trying to get rid of those horrible feelings; making her forget about the reality that was her life.

The girl failed to notice the approach of the slender, white headed, almost angelic looking male. His feet were silent against the floor as if he could be floating rather then walking. Brows rose slightly and he looked to the girl in sorrow. For even though she was smiling he could feel her heart; feel her sense of almost sadness covered by the smile simple humans and machines would believe. Tranquil eyes looked her up and down, feeling even more sorrow for her. It was sad to see her out of bed from her love, dressed in her usual night wear of white shorts and a baby pink shirt. Letting out a silent sigh, he moved slightly into one of the blue lights that eliminated most of the shadows on his body to let himself be on show.

"Faith," his soft voice mustered under his breath, hoping to have her attention. She made no movement of her head but she leaned back to balance her weight on both her feet, acknowledging him even if she didn't want to. She kept her fingers under the water, watching as her skin slowly turned to a raw pink shade from the cold. "Shouldn't you be asleep?"

"Shouldn't you?" she snapped back, not turning her head. Her tone was as cold as the water but chaos did not flinch, did not show any emotions.

"I can't sleep," he replied politely. "And I assume you cannot either."

"Not in this forsaken ship," she hissed and suddenly snapped her head to him. Her eyes were colder then usual, her brows furrowed as she stared at him. "With that damn liar that's meant to love me! Why?! Why am I meant to dye my hair constantly and change my eyes? Why in the world does he want me to be named Hope? I despise that name to the core of my soul, Yeshua. I absolutely despise it and I despise this shade of my eyes and my hair."

"He wants you to be happy," he told her, actually hating how he had to lie. He knew this was all getting too much for the young woman. She hated lies, she hated not understanding and he had to admit the requests Gaignun was setting upon her would be rather strange if you weren't given a substantial explanation. Nobody wanted her to be frightened for the fact the Government were after her. They wanted to keep her safely tucked in a warm blanket of white lies. "I moved on from my old life. I changed my name and became someone knew. That's what Gaignun wishes for you to do too. So that you can feel happier with yourself."

"A change of hair and name does not hide who you are," she hissed, her eyes now growing dark like they would moments before she committed a murder. However, he was not frightened. He would never allow himself to be. She would never lay a finger on him. Not on purpose.

Before he had a moment to say anymore, she had sharply turned from him and was looking back at the fountain, taken in by the water flowing in the cycle. "It's weak to pretend you are someone you are not," she hissed with an ice cold tone that actually caused the white teenager to shiver. She froze after those words that had flown from her mind and continued to stare. He could see her face slightly breaking, the creases in her skin loosening and her eyes becoming hurt from her own words.

'_Gaignun is pretending he is being someone else. Who in the world am I to brand him being weak?'_ she thought to herself. Moving her hand she shook it slightly to some of the water off and without another word turned from chaos and headed for the door. A sigh left his lips and his fingers fumbled in his pockets for a few moments and finally he pulled out a silver mobile phone and tapped in a number.

Faith Ackermann was what he could call a rare child in the greatest respects. She was a child he was most fond of, someone that was so strange and peculiar in many ways that did not include her wicked powers that he did his best to ignore. When he was only young and he was brought to his second home to work he had not been told of the girls mystic powers. He had greeted the family one by one; from mother to father to son, to cousin, to aunt to Grandmother and Grandfather but he had never been greeted to the daughter of the household. He had never been told there was a daughter of the household though he had come across the room many a times that belonged to her.

It was the third one on the left, if he could remember correctly. The door was sometimes laced with lavenders to make the area smell fresh. Emilia didn't do that; it was their father that made a peaceful atmosphere in the home. The door was white and once when he didn't know of Faith he had entered. The room was a typical Victorian styled bedroom for a young woman. The walls were a pale shade of pink. On the edges of the walls near the corners were pictures of lilies and other blue plants with large, unruly stems and leaves that would flow far from the flower. They were washout and pale. A window seat was by the window where the first story roof was. The roof was flat and allowed a simple, easy escape if necessary (thinking back, the butler thought how strange it was to have such an easy escape for a desperate murderer) and there was a view of the deep woods behind the house. The bed was white with a lilac coloured pattern on it and it was covered in many teddies for a child.

Quickly, as he remembered, the son Gabriel got him out of the room, requesting for the most stupid of things from a glass of water to a push on the swings. The room quickly slipped from the black headed mans mind but a few months later he was finally introduced to the young child.

'_Her hair … oh it was strange …'_ Damion thought to himself as he tapped on the steering wheel of the car, humming slightly to the music in the background as the smart man carefully drove. The recently used mobile was on the passenger seat, bouncing slightly as he continued to drive; blue eyes were partially filled with concentration though they were slightly dulled from his deepened thoughts.

_It was a cold winter's morning, snow gently falling from the sky and blanketing the world in an icy cold layer, silencing it as it did as such. Damion Blanc was doing his usual duties of cleaning the household on the Saturday morning. That day he was told he could clean the ominous room he knew nothing about and being loyal he did as such. It was an usual mess, books had magically flown from one end of the room to the other, pages spewn out onto the floor along with drawings of that of five year old ability. He picked them all up carefully and put them back in a neat place on the desk trying not to ask himself where they had come from or what had happened. It was none of his business. Nothing for him to ask about. He was just the Butler; he was not allowed to ask such questions and if he was then he wouldn't allow himself to. But as he began to clean the windows, he noticed something at the back of the house, playing in the garden just on the edge of the woods.__ As he looked closer, squinting his eyes slightly, he could see two of those something's and they were children._

_Only one was recognisable to his sea eyes. The tallest one, a boy that was Gabriel dressed in a black coat covered in white snow. The other was not. A girl with a similar black coat and stunning red and pink coloured hair. During childhood, there was more pink in her hair then there was red but as she grew Damion noticed how the red seemed to become more dominant and was much more common in her hair then the pink though they were both still there Being older, understanding and knowing more of Faith he could see why that happened. Pink was the colour of childish innocence while red was the colour of rage and of course … blood._

_As Gabriel had once said she was turning into a monster though Damion would never have thought it in such a way nor would he had worded it like that._

_After inquiring about Gabriel's playmate, both mother and father finally gave in and described all of Faith's powers. They had gained the loyalty and created a close bond of friendship between them and Damion that could not be broken. They trusted him with the family secrets and he finally understood why the small family had hired him. They didn't need a butler what with how small they were and how helpful both parents were. They were a wealthy family, yes and their home was quite large but they didn't seem lazy and they would defiantly cope without him. Well, that was if there wasn't Faith._

_He was almost hired to be a third parent, a protector of Faith herself even before Yeshua came along (who Damion believed Emilia had used just to try and calm down her murderous ways with Religion). He wasn't scared of her, nor did he think of her wrong. He woke her up every morning with breakfast and kept to her side, making Master Gabriel jealous as he did so. He broke up any deathly fights between him and his sister. Unlike mother and father he wasn't related by blood and that almost made it easier to talk to Faith. He could understand how hurt Emilia was for having a child that enjoyed murder and he could see she was scared. He could even see her anger towards her._

_He felt sorry for the little girl._

It didn't take long for Faith to storm back to her room she shared with Gaignun. In the darkness, she stared at him as best she could, only seeing faint outlines. A smile grew on her face as she approached the bed; all the anger and hatred she had swiftly disappeared like she hadn't felt it at all. She even forgot about it, flushed it to the back of her mind. She stood at the side Gaignun lay on and watched the raven headed mans chest rise and fall as he gently breathed, his hands had slipped under the pillows for warmth and only half of his bare chest was covered by the bed sheets. Biting her lip and being as quiet as possible, which was a difficult task for her; she brought her hand out and gently caressed the back of her knuckles on the side of his cheek. His brows moved slightly as she ran her finger down his lip and reached down to gently claim them with her own. She smiled against them and frowned slightly as he felt his lips move against hers.

Before she had a chance for her mind to click into what was going on she was on her back on the bed; rough hands having grabbed her tight around her wrists. She squirmed, unable to breathe with Gaignun's lips still pushed against hers. Her eyes were shut, this she hadn't realized, and she could feel his weight on her fragile body, his hips pushing into hers. She tried to move her legs as she was pushed harder into the bed but he had twisted his so she couldn't move them that well. She was trapped by her lovers will and such a thing could have amused her if he didn't feel so cold. It wasn't Gaignun. It was the other one. That one inside of him. Whatever his dammed name was!

He grinned against her lips, "Gaignun" pushing down a little harder into her hips. She whimpered against his lips and was now squirming furiously, needing air. Her lungs were aching from the lack of it and she couldn't breathe properly from her nose unlike him. She was too panicked from his strength and his tongue moving energetically against hers. Air. Dear God she needed damn air!!

Finally, he pulled away allowing her to bring in an airy gasp. She choked for air for a few moments as a smirk grew on "Gaignun's" face. When she finally opened her eyes she was unable to see in the darkness the different colour his eyes had gone.

"What's wrong? I hadn't realized the dead need air," he smirked, proud of his cruel line even though it didn't affect Faith whatsoever. She only growled in response and thrashed furiously against his body, trying to get free. She'd never resort to her powers. Not on Gaignun's body. Defiantly on the man's body if he had his own but not on Gaignun's.

"Get your hands off me," she hissed. "No, better yet, give Gaignun his damn mind back you interfering ass!"

"You're the one that kissed him," he purred and nudged her cheek with his nose. His fingers wrapped as tight as possible around her wrists. "I've been trapped in such a state I haven't been able to touch a women for a long time. It's not my fault I jumped to the moment before he did."

"I wasn't asking for a moment," she glared and shivered slightly. "I was asking for a tender few seconds with my lover. Not anything sexual like your thinking. Get off me!!!"

She had screamed that last part of her speech a little too loudly and before she knew it the bedroom door was opened wide, white headed chaos at her rescue as usual. Too bad he was missing a white steed to follow him about. Gaignun's head was snapped to the door, in an instant in the depths of the darkness his eyes had changed to their usual emerald shade and his father disappeared from his thoughts. Faith's eyes were widened in a panic as she felt dazed confusion come from the stunned Gaignun. When he turned his head to her she felt his hands loosen and she slipped from his grip. She wrapped her hand around his head and pulled it down to her neck, tucking his face into her warm skin to keep him silenced. She put on a show and glared furiously at chaos who looked slightly worried and embarrassed at the same time.

"Chaos!! What are you doing in here?!" she yelled trying to sound angry and embarrassed at the same time. Neither of the emotions were that hard to pull off. She was irritated at him for sticking his nose in every point of her life (though her scream had sounded quite panicked and it would've been strange for no one to appear) and she was embarrassed from being spotted in such a position.

"You were yelling, I got worried," he said as she shivered, feeling Gaignun's breath brush against the nape of her neck. She ran her fingers through his hair, knowing he would stay in place. He had unwrapped his legs, allowing her movement.

"No need to worry, I was just joking around with Gaignun," she assured and gave a final glare before looking disturbed and nervous at him standing there. She was even blushing, which added to the act and before she knew it chaos had wished them both goodnight and left the room.

Gaignun lifted his head the second he heard chaos leave the room, the door shut firmly behind him. He stared at Faith who stared back, fear dipped in her eyes. No matter how harsh she acted she would never be able to hide her fear. At least not afterwards.

"I'm sorry!" and that was all it took before his head was yet again tucked desperately in her neck; his hands wrapped around her head. He pulled her into a tight embrace, not wanting to let go. Shaking slightly, Faith hugged him back, ignoring what had happened. It was between her and the other person, not her and Gaignun but still it terrified her.

"It's alright, hush now," she whispered into his ear, feeling his skin quiver slightly. She breathed heavily against him, trying to be as calm as possible. She was shivering, her childish personality seeping through like usual. She was always strong when Albedo turned on her but when Gaignun did…

"Stop crying, stop crying please," he whispered deep into her ears. Blinking a few times, she felt her damp lids crash against each other and a warm roll of water dropped down her cheek. She sniffed, not realizing she had been crying and this time it was her turn to dig her face into her lover's neck. She whispered something into his skin he was only about to understand and he smiled slightly and kissed her head.

"I love you," he told her, laying her into the sheets with him. They had moved so he was now lying on her side but he had pulled her so close they could have blended into one. He kissed her forehead one last time before he began to whisper a song into her ear. She felt all the fear drain from her heart, her blood through the pores of her skin and she nuzzled up to him, wanting more of his musical words to fill her head; to feel his hands touching her forever.

"_Don't make me change,"_

_A finger ran across her cheek "You're Faith Ackermann and I __love who you are."_

"_Then why do you insist on me changing?"_

"_I think of it in a way to help you. I thought if you got rid of anything to remind you of your past you'd be happier."_

"_You're my past. I wouldn't be able to live without you and yeah I know how corny and cheesy that sounds."_

_His musical laughter lifted through the dark room and she smiled. Before she knew it he had taken her fingers in his hand and was kissing her knuckles. "Will you marry me?"_

"_Will I what?!"_

**Comments .::. **Lamest chapter ever. I have new plans, don't worry I just needed to finish this off to get the ball rolling again. Enjoy and Merry Christmas xxx


	32. Remain Your Funny Valentine

_**Remain your funny valentine …**_

_**Please don't drive me blind. If I could tear you from the ceiling, I know, the best have tried. I'd fill your every breathe with meaning and find a place we both can hide.**_

_**||. If I could tear you from the ceiling, I'd freeze us both in**_

_**time. **_

_**And find a brand new way of seeing , your eyes **_

_**forever glued **_

_**to mine. .||**_

**||.. Comments ..|| -- **Hehe, my first chapter of the year~ I think at least XD I'm actually really happy with this, it's pretty decent especially seeing as though my writing isn't that brilliant. Anyhow, I hope you all enjoy this and a big thanks to all of my friends who have supported me through writing Bitter Sweet. Only a few more chapters to go and its slowly, slowly, wrapping itself together. Well, at least I hope it is XDXD I'm re-writing quite a few chapters too by the way and I'll probably post them up when I've completed the entire story!~ Hehe, hope you enjoy this!~ 8D xxx

**|| Chapter [Thirty-Two] ||**

**Remain Your Funny Valentine**

_Damion looked down at the little girl who was picking up random yellow spotted flowers from the ground, tearing them from their resting place. He was humming as they walked, providing her with some noise as they walked through the small path in the isolated woods behind the house. A perfect place of harmony and peace he liked to take the girl for walks to help clear her mind and help her forget the terrible things that were happening in her life. Even though she was fifteen years old she was still trailing behind him, running up to him quickly whenever he would get too far ahead and her eyes were constantly darting left to right whenever something new happened in the magical world of the woods where her imagination could go crazy and her bright blue eyes could absorb everything. That day Yeshua was trailing a little behind her, watching with his calm, tranquil eyes that blinked every so often. Her two only guardians were as warm and inviting as anything yet cool and calm at the same time; never did they blow up nor have a rare sharp wave. They were as calm as the sea with no storm trying to anger them. She was lucky, even if she did not realize it at that point. Her small hands punched up into the air, her knees pushed her off her feet and she released all the tiny flowers she had collected on her journey and laughed slightly as they fell around her, one or two landing in her hair. The little laughter of chaos was close behind her and as she felt the fingers of him brushing out her hair, a large groan entered her ears._

"_You like to waste the beauty in the world, don't you?" Gabriel's dark voice spat towards her, making her sharply turn her head, glaring straight away without a moment's hesitation. The teenager that despised her more then anything else in the world was leaned against a tree, his silk chocolate locks threatening to cover his eye._

"_Haven't you got a God to worship, Other Hand?" she hissed back as Damion turned his head, watching the argument begin to unfold._

"_Oh don't try to be clever, you know it won't work," he growled, folding his arms across his chest almost in an attempt to show dominance towards her. She was stood calmly, her hands to her sides and her body partially turned from him._

"_I'm not trying to be clever," she replied calmly, raising a brow to him. There was a long pause of silence before Gabriel decided to part his lips for more of his foul sounding voice to be heard._

"_Why have you come for a walk, Faith? Nothing has happened to you lately," he asked maliciously yet calmly. His dark eyes looked up from her stomach to her head and back down again. In the background, Damion's eyes widened slightly and before any words could be spoken, he was stood beside Faith, looking to Gabriel._

"_Master Gabriel, we decided just to take her for a walk. There need not be a reason for it. It's a beautiful day," he said politely, showing off his pearly whites as Faith watched his lips move; his throat creating his handsome voice._

"_Suspicious," he hissed, not caring how rude he was acting to a man that hadn't said a word against him and never would do. "You don't take her for a walk unless something happened. Come, come you two. Tell what happened."_

"_Gabriel, we shouldn't be talking about this," chaos said, placing a hand on Faith's shoulder. "Come on Faith, we have things to do."_

Putting her left handed nail into her mouth, she bit the nail gently between her teeth; her now forest green eyes staring foreword at the circle quite a few feet ahead of her. Her lips curled inwards into the most playful, excited grin and her sharp teeth came on show; the pure white pearls still pressing against her thick red nail that was painted the colour of blood. A strand of blonde hair covered her eye but she ignored it and lifted her right hand. In her mind, the blond repeated all that the redheaded boy had told her, and tightened her fingers. She wore a simple pair of dark blue denim shorts and black leggings, despite the cold weather, and a playful red shirt with a wash out image of a sketched Cookie Monster in the corner. She wore her rag doll necklace, and her blonde hair was curled beautifully, still smelling of the hair dye she had used just a few hours ago.

Tightening her fingers even more, her arm was pushed back slightly as a bang echoed through the room and a bullet landed straight in the middle of the red and white coloured circle. Excitement seeped through her heart along with a strong sense of success as she let her finger push down on the trigger a few more times, keeping the barrel pointed in the same place; hitting the same spot.

"Hell yeah! Ya got it, Faith," Rubedo's voice congratulated and once she had finished, he patted her hard on the back, grinning widely. In response she took her nail from her mouth and stuck out her tongue playfully, before looking to the gun in her hands, decorated in the most beautiful patterns.

"Didn't think I was this good, did you Rubedo?" she asked, again sticking out her tongue and winking. He laughed slightly and in the small room he began putting the other weapons back into their holders.

"Nah, I didn't," he smirked. "Girl's usually ain't that good at firing."

She gave a laugh, spinning the gun between her fingers. "Yeah, yeah, you just haven't seen us in action, Jr. Think Gaignun's finished his work?" she asked happily as Rubedo turned to her with his bright blue eyes, smiling at her excitement. He gazed to the clock and nodded, his brother in his office; just in the floor above where they were in the firing practise. A room Rubedo had convinced Gaignun to make just for him.

"Yeah, I bet he has," he smiled at her gently, looking at her hair. "I bet he'd be really excited to see you too," there was something strange about his tone and how tense he was stood there but he was genuine about his words. The man that put that beautiful ring on her left hand finger would be more then excited to see her.

_They were looking for a girl with blonde hair and bright red and pink roots. The people in that building. There were no roots. No roots yet and no blue eyes and her hair was a completely different style and she looked so young in that photo and she looked so different now especially with those scars…_

Rubedo just _had_ to stop thinking…

The thinking had taken his mind up so much he hadn't noticed Faith talking and then holding the gun to him, offering it him back. He stared for a few minutes, trying to understand what she wanted but the second he realized she was giving it back he shook his head. "Keep it," and he pushed it towards her carefully. "It's yours."

She grinned and placed it in her belt like she would do if she carried a knife and smiled gratefully at Rubedo. "Thanks Jr," she smiled and leaned down slightly to pat his soft locks with her fingers and quickly headed to the door, before grabbing her black jacket of course. She gave a great big wave as she waited for the door to slide open before leaving him in the room.

Curling her blonde hair around her ear, which looked much lighter then it was before with a hint of brown. It seemed more ash blonde then true yellow blonde like it had been when she was a child. The thought of looking like her old self had crossed her mind (for reasons completely different to Gaignun and Rubedo's) and it looked different to her. Besides, she preferred it to the wine red she had dyed it about a month ago. It looked prettier and she prayed Gaignun would think the same as she walked the stairs to the floor he was on, enjoying a walk rather then taking the elevator. Plus, that movie she had watched with her fiancé the other night had defiantly put her off elevators. Horrifying little machines that would kill at any moment. She shivered as she remembered the horrible point in the movie and tried to focus her mind on something else as her knuckles knocked against the door of Gaignun's office.

His muffled voice came to her ears like a piece of candy and she smiled excitedly, feeling frogs jump in her stomach rather then butterflies. It had been mere months since she had met him. Her life had completely changed from the massacre it was when she was a child to Albedo's torture and now it was in Gaignun's love where she prayed it would stay. When he granted her permission to come in, though he had no idea it was her, she pushed the button and the door slid open.

Grinning, she stepped inside his office, putting her hands clasped in front of her politely, her head up high as she walked with her trainers on. Her feathery ash hair bounced gently as she looked to the left, seeing Gaignun with his head lowered; his brows furrowed as he wrote some things down on a document. She glanced to the opposite side of the desk, seeing a second man in the fresh office. His name was Helmer, a man she had met quite a few times who was always friendly with her, always happy Gaignun had found someone he loved. His friendliness was just as strong as he smiled at Faith as she bowed, still with no attention from Gaignun who was quickly scribbling something down. Not even he could write in pen very well, what with computers having taken over the world. Only she had a steady hand.

"Ah I didn't recognise you with hair like that, Faith," Helmer's voice sang as she lifted her head with her bangs covering her eyes.

"Yes Sir, I dyed it just. It looks different, doesn't it?" she smiled politely, shaking ever so slightly from her usual the usual nerves she got from being around such important people. Luckily the shivers she had were never noticed by anyone apart from herself. Still keeping a neat posture, she moved over to Gaignun and sat on the arm of his black chair; his eyes still not looking at her. Tenderly she reached for his fingers and went to take the pen. "Let me write and you can go get a cup of coffee," she smiled.

That was when his eyes grazed to the side and looked up at her. His emerald gems couldn't help but stare at her locks as she moved foreword a little, their heads being close as they were locked into another bubble that was impossible to pop. They were caught up in silence and the strange expression Gaignun gave Faith stopped her from smiling so widely and she frowned a little, asking what mentally though he wouldn't be able to hear. A shiver of panic ran through his body and swelled up in his heart like a lump, hurting with ever beat.

A laugh came from Helmer that seemed distance to both their ears. "If she's willing to help, let her. It's late Gaignun, you could do with one cup of coffee," he smiled at him as Gaignun's eyes looked to him only in politeness.

"Your right…" his throat was dry as he began to move. She slid her fingers across his strong hand and eased the pen from his fingers and like they were water, in a few fluid movements he had stood to his feet, letting her slip to sit properly on the chair that smelled of his colone. For a few seconds she watched as he walked down the office to the small kitchen and then she looked to the paper, getting to work in filling in everything Helmer was telling her.

To Gaignun that cup of coffee was like paradise. She was sat with Helmer with her hair blonde! If he could call it blonde at least. But still, she looked familiar to the photo and there she was … sitting with them both. Both who were meant to lock her away for everything she had done in her young life. Sipping the coffee quietly, he heard her laughter in the background that soothed him along with the heated liquid that he felt run down his throat and land in his stomach, heating the rest of his body. He sighed slightly to himself, closing his eyes as he gathered his thoughts. Helmer had said nothing. Her hair had no evidence of ever being naturally red and pink. Her hair wasn't even proper blonde; she would be fine. Everything was fine and even her eyes were a different colour. They were a pretty forest green that made him smile slightly.

Turning from where he stood, he moved back to the desk they were at and put the coffee down, smiling politely at Helmer. Instantly, Faith stood up and they switched positions so that Gaignun was sat back down on the chair and she moved to sit on his knee, still filling in the paper work. Helmer gave a smile to Gaignun as he sipped his coffee, watching Faith from behind.

"She's better at filling paper work then you seem to be," he smiled in a joking fashion. "Perhaps you should consider letting her be your secretary."

"I have done," Gaignun replied, setting down his drink. "But I don't believe Faith enjoys such a boring job."

"Who says I didn't?" she asked with a smirk, putting the papers together. "It's far more interesting then hanging around with chaos or Rubedo all day."

Gaignun smiled and kissed her head as he went into another work related conversation with Helmer sat on the other side of the desk as Faith continued to write in her neat handwriting, smiling and blushing as Gaignun's hands made their way around her waist and his lips pushed against her head every once and awhile.

Once Helmer had left in the hours closing to the new day, Faith felt Gaignun's fingers slip into her belt holding her shorts and she wriggled, blushing furiously as they explored. She felt something move across her hip and it took her a moment to realize what that something was Gaignun was now holding in his hands.

"Did Jr give you this?" he asked her with a playful tone, trying to ignore her hair. He was still shaken up about it but it was fine. Helmer didn't know. It was fine. She looked as he moved the gun between his fingers, frowning slightly as if it held a world of secrets and history.

"Yep, he did," she laughed slightly, taking it from her hands and setting it on the desk. "Is it okay if I keep it? I'm not going to shoot anyone, don't worry," she gave off a musical laugh. Of course she wouldn't shoot anyone. She didn't need to. Hell she had the powers to do whatever she wanted to anyone without the need of weapons.

"Yes, that's fine," he laughed as she leaned back, setting her head lazily on his chest. She looked up to him with slightly sleepy eyes as he put his fingers in her hair, playing with the silk locks. "You dyed your hair blonde …"

"Its ash blonde with a hint of mousey brown…" she said lazily, now shutting her eyes as she felt the soothing rise and fall of his chest beneath her, something that she treasure along with his gentle and fast heart beat behind his ribs. "It looks like a kind of white anyway … it's really pretty…" her voice was fading as she was being claimed more by sleep. As if to push her into slumber, Gaignun pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her, still keeping his one hand in her hair to brush it gently.

"Yes, very pretty," he lips pushed against her head to kiss her but he didn't pull away. His next sentence was spoken into her locks as she fell asleep. "So pretty we should make sure it covers your roots all the time…" she gave a small moan in response before being flown off to her dreams.

_Darkness. It was never a comforting thing especially when the darkness covered an entire room, an entire hallway; an entire ship. Every room, ever inch was completely engulfed in black with faint outlines coming from the windows. The only light were the stars in the black space that flew around like space fireflies, or so the little Realian believed. This was what it was like in the night time. A version of black space in the ship yet with no fireflies flying around to provide comfort and hope along with light. It was the exact reason why if she awoke in the night she would shove her head deep under her pillow, scrunch her eyes shut and concentrate on sleeping. Well, if she ever woke up in the night. Master's being were often so fierce they left her completely and utterly exhausted to the point she'd collapse in the bed like a sogey piece of paper would collapse. But that night was obviously completely different. His beating hadn't occurred the day before, had it?_

_Well if it had she couldn't __**feel**__ any pain. Thinking about it, dressed in just an oversized shirt and her underwear, she couldn't feel any pain. Not even her sore bruises that would have occurred a few days before. That did remind her … when had he last beaten her black and blue? Her eyes weren't rough from tears and her bones didn't ache and she couldn't feel the cold biting her pale skin as she curled some of the wig hair behind her ear from a bad habit. Actually … she didn't even feel the soft touch of her fake hair against her small finger._

"_Ma poupee," the cold voice purred from the side of her, Master sat in her bed, watching her carefully with his glowing purple eyes. She turned her head to him, feeling her long locks only slightly brushing across her shoulder as she looked to him with her eyes._

"_Yes?" she questioned, not feeling the need to add 'Master' onto the end of her sentence. As if she was refreshing her memory, she looked the white headed man up and down, taking in where his muscles curved on his chest and how pale his skin was and how the waist band of his boxers fitted around his waist. She even took in how his snow white hair looked as if she had never seen him in a long time and wouldn't see him for awhile. A shiver ran down her spine as he put a hand on her cheek._

"_How are you?" he purred gently. "It's strange to see you awake …"_

"_I'm fine," she replied, looking into his eyes carefully with slight suspicion. She wasn't fearful of him hurting her; something was telling her he couldn't do that. He couldn't harm her at all. "How are you? How are you feeling …?" it was strange to find out what to ask him, as if she was tongue-tied._

"_I am feeling fine as usual," his fingers slipped down her cheek. She followed his pale finger with her eye, frowning slightly as she saw a small scar embedded in the flesh. "Do you miss me…?"_

Opening her eyes slowly, the fading of the dream still lingered in her mind like a sour smell, and the thought of Albedo being so close stuck in her head. The room she lay in was dark like in her dream, sheets covering her body that didn't feel pain but didn't feel that strange numb feeling either. The warmth of the sheets were soothing and the darkness of the room wasn't as horrifying as the other darkness she lay in. Turning to the side, feeling a heat emit from something else, she finally felt the hard, muscular arm of Gaignun wrapped around her waist, holding her close. She had been put to bed after being changed into a pair of shorts and a short sleeved shirt and her hair had been tied back for her just as she liked it when she slept. Gaignun had his eyes shut, his breathing soft and even as he slept, deep in his own dreams that Faith was quite curious about. She wished to dive into his mind and see what his mind produced to entertain him with as he gained his energy back though she had a feeling she would be in one or two of them. Normal people had normal dreams about lovers and happy moments. She had odd dreams about killing her lover. Now … that wasn't normal at all.

But she was more concerned about the dream she had just experienced rather then the ones she had done before or the ones Gaignun had. It felt so vivid, so crisp and fresh as if she had been sat with Albedo but that was impossible. For starters he was dead and secondly, she was a Kirshwasser during that. It was probably just some silly little memory slipping its way into her dream just to be shown. She had been thinking a little of Albedo lately due to his death so that could have sprung it on. Slowly, her finger reached out to run down across Gaignun's cheek, her skin warm against his. A little stir came from him and she worried not about his father seeping into his personality. That was never something to worry about. It was something she found irritating when it happened but nothing she thought about.

She gently pushed her lips against his warm cheek and smiled as she pulled away, putting her hand on his shoulder. She shuffled closer, feeling her leg push against his as she tucked her head into his neck, breathing slowly to try and get to sleep again, hoping Albedo wouldn't be the main character of her dreams once again. But, just as she began to fall asleep, a flinch ran through her body as a beep emitted from the pillow her head was set on. Opening her eyes groggily, she looked at the peaceful sleeping face of her fiancé before slipping a hand under her cool pillow.

Fingers clasped around her blue phone that she pulled from where it was and she squinted from the light, flipping it open. Chaos' name flashed on the screen as she opened the text message he had left for her. A frown appeared on her face from the words and she gazed down to sleeping Gaignun, holding the phone tight in her fingers. A faint "damn it," escaped her airy throat as she shut the phone up and slid it back under her pillow. Even though it was from her sights it wouldn't be forgotten about.

Pulling away from Gaignun's hold, she slipped out of the sheets, shivering from the cold air wrapping itself around her body. She rubbed her eyes with her knuckles gently, and yawned softly, kicking her feet out of the bed to go onto the floor. Standing up straight, she turned to tuck the sheets tight around still sleeping Gaignun and moved from the bed and to the door, keeping her footsteps as quiet as she possibly could. Faith slipped her feet into her black footwear and then grabbed her red silk nightgown, wrapping it around herself before she left the room.

Heading from the kitchen, she still stayed as quiet as possible, keeping all the lights off. She grabbed the house phone as she entered the dark kitchen. Dialling in a number, she showed off her ability to multitask by grabbing a glass and filling it up with water using her other hand. She put the phone to her ear as she ran the tap for cold water and waited for the person to answer. Once they did, her glass was full and she was sipping the water quietly. When they greeted her, she put her glass down and simply replied.

"Where are you?"

* * *

"That's all you wanted to tell me?" Faith asked him, feeling the cold winter night pouring upon their skin. She eyed the white headed boy with a grin before throwing the folder that she held into the water just below the bank they sat upon. "That doesn't matter anymore. I'm going to change, just you wait and see. Everything will be fine."

"I understand, I just thought you should know," he told her gently. "They're looking for you, Faith. If you let them think you have powers then …"

"No one will know, Yeshua," she laughed happily, standing up to her feet. "Now if you don't mind I have a fiancé to get back to. There's going to be no more Damion, Gabriel and death and guess what, Yeshua?"

"What?" he asked.

"Everything will be perfect. Wait and see."

_**We're sewn together, I'll die inside her~**_

_**~Don't let me down, like you let me down before~**_


	33. Part Two: My Debut

**|. Bitter Sweet II .|**

"_You've turned into a fugitive?"_

"_They're after me. Everyone's after me. Either I can kill them all, or they shall execute me."_

"_There's nothing more you can do?"_

"_No. You can either be with me … or you can be against me."_

_Torn between his love for his wife to be, and the murder she has finally become, what will Gaignun do? Fallen to the curse of her murderous powers, Faith is now a victim of her past. When the only thing she had to be fearful of was the memories that came into her mind, what will now become of her and the world now that her sadistic side has made its official debut? And what will happen to Gaignun whilst his mind is being completely overtaken by the madman of his father inside?_

_The happily ever after comes for all with sacrifice. Between them what will they have to sacrifice?_

_When all is believed to be lost, a long missed 'friend' suddenly appears at Faith's side. With them both working side by side, who will she answer to? Her heart or him or even her powers?_

**[[ … Rating … ]] **Teen for language [Faith's REALLY peeved, what do you expect? XD], blood, horror, slight sexual reference [and rare… as in after THIS chapter there won't be none anymore … actually I'm not sure whether to call it a reference or not O.O], and a dark, morbid storyline.

**[[ … Comments …]]** With too much to fit into Bitter Sweet, and my forever love of Faith, I just had to create a second story. I hope you enjoy it just as much, or even more, then the first~ This is more of Faith's outer past finally breaking into her present days [come on, it had to happen one day with how strong her old self used to be]. And we FINALLY get to know why she's like it! I mean FINALLY, right? Jeez, I over wrote this story for too long. And you guys had better like this. I've wrote it instead of studying for my French Oral tomorrow. ENJOY.

**|| Chapter [One] ||**

**My Debut, How Do I Look? Is My Makeup Okay?**

**I Can't Let That Audience Down …**

The ominous figure left much to the imagination. Dressed in a simple plain white dress, that seemed to glow against the darkened office room that belonged to Gaignun; beautiful long white hair flowed down from a childish head. With skin as pale as a sick child, the girl looked like a fragile piece of glass; every bit of light that could be collected from the drab room was reflected off her shimmering plain white colours. The only thing that stuck out most from the girl's plain face were her bright, ice blue eyes that could just about be seen under her thick, pitch black eye lashes and her soft red lips that were curled inwards; an almost cruel menacing grin. Trying to create an illusion of childish innocence, her hands were clasped together in front of her stomach, her arms as straight as they could be so that her weak bones could be seen sticking out of her thin, white skin. Looming, she resembled something much of a porcelain doll, one that a kid might through into the deepest shadows of a closet to hide away their frightening un-changeable face. The computer screens still flashed around, as if there was nothing else in the room, and everything remained how it had been a few moments ago.

Slipping back on the chair that belonged to her fiancé's, Faith eyed the strange girl up and down, not feeling alarmed by her presence. The stylus she had clutched in her fingers as she gently pressed down on the keyboard was now on the desk, resting silently as her magical gold and blue eyes stared at the girl. With the little bit of light, Faith's now womanly features could be seen beautifully. Over the past few months she had grown into quite an attractive woman, with no more injuries to be sustained. Her wounds had healed nicely, with very few scars lining her clear olive skin. Her hair was still the strange mixture of red and pink; strangely enough more red had begun to appear in her hair, almost covering her bangs in bloody red natural highlights. Thankfully too, she had grown three inches; now able to just about rest her chin on Gaignun's shoulder if she wanted to. Small muscles were now visible on her arms; her entire body toned from the fighting Rubedo would sometimes teach her to do. As she moved a little more, being quiet as to not disturb the child, light reflected on the beautiful four leaf clover wrapped around her neck. The clover happily rested on the centre of her chest, being cushioned by the soft red shit she was wearing. After a long moment of waiting expectantly, the girl finally did what Faith had been waiting for.

The Untitled girl ran her hands through her hair, bringing out big clumps of blood that soon ran through her fingers, dripping onto the once clean floor. Faith couldn't help but shake as she watched the now bloody girl make her way towards her. Though she had known exactly what the girl was to do, it couldn't elude the fearful side of it – the part that made her heart pound so quickly it was as if it were going to fly through her chest and attack the girl. That would be quite a good thing; it would get rid of the terrifying girl, but it would kill her at the same time. Before she even had a chance to think of what a stupid idea it was, she felt her body suddenly convulse.

With a light cry, she shot open her eyes. Lying, or sitting, weirdly on the chair, she felt her bones stiff from how she sat. A strange sensation overcame her as she was pushed from her nightmare and back into the real world, where her feet were on the desk in front of her, and her back bent on the chair she sat on. Her head was halfway down the chair, the one side of it leaning on the side handle for support. As her body had convulsed, sharply waking up in a sudden lurch, the stylus dropped from her fingers, rolling onto the other side of the office. Immediately, her eyes shot up to the top end of the office where the girl had been standing. It was night, just like in the nightmare; her surroundings exactly like they had been before, yet there was no girl who Faith had the 'pleasure' of meeting at least once a night. Eventually, she had given the girl the name Untitled, which seemed to suit her ever so well. Groaning a little, she forced herself to sit up properly, letting out another groan as her back stretched from the rigid position it had been in as she slept.

"_Are you okay? Did you have a nightmare again?"_ Gaignun's voice came on the loudspeaker in the room for her to hear. Moaning a little, she heard another sound; an impatient beep of a monitor to the left of her. The small monitor was one used for communications to and from the room she was in. The camera was still on for her end, meaning wherever Gaignun was he would be able to watch her with his emerald eyes. She pushed a button down, to stop the stupid beeping that was on the verge of driving her crazy. In another beep and a flash of the screen, Gaignun could be seen. The usual lines of a bad transmission could be seen too, distorting his face a little bit. Unlike her, he hadn't changed a bit, having already grown up properly. There were bags appearing under his eyes, signalling how tired he was. He too was awake in the late hours of the night, probably early hours of the next morning, still working away.

Though the only reason Faith was working, when she wasn't catching a small nap, was because of him. He hated when she did his work, but at least it took a lot of strain off the workaholic.

"Just a little thing that passed," she smiled to him assuredly. Jumping off the chair, she stretched her arms above her head, yawning lightly as she did so. "Sorry I fell asleep, honey." She could see in the corner of her eye his blush as she called him that. "I'll get back to work."

"_Faith, sit down now,"_ he ordered. Still used to taking orders, Faith obeyed him, sitting down on the chair. She watched him with her curious eyes as he spoke seriously. _"Your birthday is tomorrow, and I want you to rest."_

Furiously, she glared at him. "My birthday is tomorrow and I want _you _to be there!" she almost yelled at the computer.

"_I can't be there …"_ he sorrowfully whispered, pain reflecting in his emerald gems. _"I've arranged for chaos to meet up with you tomorrow, if that is okay."_

"Ecstatic," she rolled her eyes sarcastically. She and chaos hadn't spoken for weeks, probably around a month. God knew what chaos would think of her. She almost felt sick at the thought of chaos still having lingering feelings for her, which was more then evident when her memories were first appearing. The woman looked at Gaignun, stubbornness in her eyes. "You are coming to the restaurant with me tomorrow, whether you like it or not Master Gaignun."

* * *

Oh how she wished she had full control over that damn man. "Bastard …" she hissed under her angered breathe, stabbing into her food with her fork to get rid of her rage. "Complete and utter fucking bastard. I might as well be a fucking lesbian; at least women can be more understanding of occasions."

"Faith…"

"I hope his 'manness' gets trapped in one of those forsaken draws…" she hissed, ignoring the polite voice on the opposite side of the table. The young woman was wearing a beautiful night gown, the fabric of it pure midnight black, highlighting her figure in the most elegant of ways. Her sparkling red and pink hair had been tied back in a bun, letting some bangs swallow the edges of her angered face. "And comes off…"

A soft, female laugh came from beside her – a much smaller woman sitting right by her at the Restaurant table. Her hair was as black as Faith's dress, with angelic curls reaching her shoulders. Her eyes were a bright shade of blue, just like Rubedo's and she was wearing a gentle lilac coloured dress. "If that happens wouldn't that be bad for you too, Fay?"

"Lock, don't encourage her …" chaos' calm voice offered to only get a glare in return from both women. Faith suddenly shot up to her feet, grabbing the attention of everyone in the restaurant. Sat at the table was her, chaos, Lock and five other guests – four of them male and one of them female. Captain Mathews, Hammy, Tony and Rubedo were meant to be here too but they couldn't find anyone to look after the Elsa, plus her Dinner Party was at late night – almost midnight and they had been working hard all day. She could excuse them, she supposed. They didn't matter as much as the black headed man. He mattered more then anyone else in the entire world.

"This is all your fucking fault, Yeshua, you and your "Oh I'll take her to the restaurant Gaignun, it's fine,"," she yelled, ignoring the burning stares on her. She didn't care that everyone, even strangers knew of her position – knew of her engagement to Gaignun Kukai. She couldn't care less that then she was ruining her reputation and possibly his. The anger had overcome her too much to the point she had no control. Never had she felt so damn angry in her entire life, never had she wanted to scream so much. "Get out of my fucking life. I don't love you, I love him and you making sure he doesn't go out with me on my birthday is over the line. _It's all your fault!!_ I hate you, your ruined everything. You know what life's been like for me and yet you go ahead anyway. You're a bastard, Yeshua!"

Faith's body quivered with the uncontrollable rage. Her mind wasn't working properly, she couldn't think of the last time she felt so angry in her entire life. Her fingers tightened around the fork she was gripping onto like it was her life, and her hand that was in the air performing movements as she screamed at chaos was suddenly swung down. The rush of her cooled her heated arm down for a split second as she prepared herself to scream some more. But when the cry of chaos ringed through her ears she froze entirely, feeling the anger fade away. With her head lowered, she remained as still as possible, feeling her heart skip important beats within her chest; her breathing had completely stopped. Panic began to bind its way around her heart, strangling her as it did as such. Every small beat felt like a stab to the chest and a cloud of anxiety overcame the restaurant; the feeling as thick as jelly. She was struggling to breathe as she pulled her eyes up from where they were pointed. In the corner of her sight she could see everyone staring at her with shocked faces and when they landed on chaos everything seemed to have clicked. From just under his collarbone he was leaking with blood, which had begun to run down his fancy dress shirt. His eyes were serene and calm as usual – she had no idea what he was thinking.

Moving back on her chair, her face full of horror, she dropped the fork onto the floor, allowing her ears to click into sounds. She could hear the muffled talking of people around her, sentences like 'Did she just do that? I'm sure she did that …' echoing through her head. Her heart began to catch up on itself as she began to breathe deeply, knowing people in this restaurant worked for the Foundation. She had damaged chaos in public – complete and utter public! In front of people that knew there was a murderer with powers like that! The only image they had of her was when her hair was blonde but with pink and red roots coming through. No one knew who she was. She could have gotten away with it like chaos had assured her that night months ago – he had told her the truth, and she was going to do well and keep it a secret. No one was going to know anything about her. She would be Mrs Kukai that took her kids to school and came back to a loving husband. She would train to be a teacher at some point, way before the kids. She had everything planned out. She'd never hurt anyone again and her old self would be a distant memory. No one would have known … but now they did. Now everyone would know of her. Tears began to prick in her eyes as she shivered slightly, seeing the blurred figure of chaos move back on his chair to go to her.

"Miss Ackermann, may you please come with me?" a calm, soothing voice politely asked her from behind in an attempt to not irritate her anymore. She could feel the sense of fear coming from the man behind her – another complete and utter stranger that knew her original name 'Ackermann'. That was all they ever knew about Faith. She was the chairman's mystery woman. Well, now she wasn't. Now she would never ever be. Not now. Not ever.

As a warm hand was placed on her shoulder her mind became an utter blur.

* * *

Panting hard, she collapsed onto her knees in exhaustion, placing her damp, sticky red palms on the Restaurant cream coloured carpet. It felt as if she had been running, for hours upon hours after her mind had blanked out, but she couldn't remember where she had run to or why. But of course, she hadn't run, she had done something just as exhausting to her dizzy, confused mind. Beads of sweat ran down her pale face, her eyes firmly shut as she tried to regain her breathe, coughing once or twice as she did. Her arms felt soaking wet and the horrible scent of morbid blood was drifting through her nose. She brought a hand to her mouth, trying not to gag up the little food she had eaten, still keeping her eyes firmly shut. She didn't want to see the massacre she had performed but why? Why had she done it? She couldn't remember anything apart from that polite man and the complete and utter fear she had felt while standing there. Now the fear was stronger, her heart pounding faster and faster then it ever had done before. How much blood was she covered in? How many people in that restaurant were now dead? Was chaos? Was Lock? Oh God she couldn't have killed Lock! Why did she do that?! Feeling tears as well as warm sweat roll down her cheeks she lifted her head, seeing the sight of blood splatters across the walls and chairs. She could see a few limp bodies with their chests torn open wide around her, their bones chipped and torn out like some sort of ferocious animal had been feeding. A scream came from the back of her throat, not leaving her covered mouth properly. Just as she shut her eyes she felt a hand cover them – the hand damp and warm, possibly sticky with blood too. She kept her mouth covered as she was pulled back to sit on the ground properly, feeling a hard body holding her close. The warmth overcame her, causing her to furiously shiver, feeling a tingling sensation on her skin.

"Don't look, don't look," chaos' voice whispered deep into her ear. With his spare hand he brushed her hair from the bun and gently began to rock her as she screamed at the back of the throat, wailing through her tears. She had screwed everything up – screwed up her life, screwed up Gaignun's. He held her trembling body closer, almost squeezing her from the strength he was using to try and keep her under control. She was such a child, such an innocent child and he had seen her eyes. They had changed their colour in a flash, returning to the horribly eerie blue they used to be when she was younger. She moved her hand as she coughed out onto the floor blood and bile; her eyes still screwed shut and covered by his dark hand. The tears wouldn't stop, mingling with the blood that belonged to those people. "Faith, Faith …" he spoke quietly over her sobbing, her ears still able to hear him. "We've got to go; we've got to go now."

"Where's Lock …?" she whispered, coughing voice more. Her throat felt raw and sore, her voice rough to use. Her entire body was shaking uncontrollably and she continued to want to throw up. She felt weak, so very, very weak from whatever she had done. Oh God, she just wanted to take back time – to take away the life she had just written for herself.

"She's fine," he assured her gently but despite his soft voice she found it hard to believe. He wasn't scolding her nor talking like she did anything wrong. It was just like being a child again but she hated the feeling. She thought she had grown up?! She didn't want this anymore! She couldn't stand it! So what the hell had happened? Gabriel was right. She'd always be the damn devil. "I'm going to take you home. On the way we'll call Gaignun. Alright?"

Managing to nod, she was slowly pulled up to her feet, chaos pulling her close to him as he did as such. Tucking her head into his chest, he made sure she couldn't see anything around them, knowing it would send her into complete and utter shock. He leaded her through the restaurant, avoiding the blood and dead bodies as much as they could, Faith whimpering against him. She had never shaken so much in her life, never had he seen her act how she did either. She snapped, the best way to put it. Completely and utterly snapped and it was more then obvious that she couldn't remember it. The fact she couldn't remember was the only thing chaos found good about the whole situation. As he brought her out into the cold street and towards his car he wondered how differently the night would have been if he had done the right thing and convinced Gaignun to get off work for her. This certainly wouldn't have happened but because of the force and the way she had changed … It seemed it was bound to happen anyway, like something else was growing within her, demanding to be released. He could see it like a craving. If someone had a craving for food and denied it for too long they would completely and utterly give control to food. Alright, bad example but that was all he could think of. What Faith did wasn't as simple as a hobby or something she enjoyed. Quite the opposite. It was like her meaning – her meaning to live and it took him so many years to realize … no one could ever deny her of it without sever consequences. Now … he was entirely stuck as to what to do.

He opened the passenger door for her and pushed her inside gently, finally letting go of her face so she could see. Her eyes took a few moments to adjust to the faint night light but once they did she shut the car door, seeing blood splayed across her left arm. She winced, looking straight foreword as chaos got into the car, knowing he'd be as covered in the liquid as she was. As he turned the car on his face was sombre, he was deep in thought. She'd have to be taken to Gaignun and then they'd figure out what to do next. Gabriel and Damion would take her in … He was sure of it…

"Do you want some music on?" he asked her gently as he began to drive, trying to break the awkward silence. His voice was so different to his facial expressions, it was soft and emotional. She shook her head, watching through the side mirror police cars driving towards the restaurant. "Come on, what's that band you really like? Placebo isn't it?"

Faith made no reply but he still reached to the controls, putting the song "Protect Me," on to dim the uncomfortable silence they had been engulfed in. She fidgeted on her seat, pushing herself down so only the top of her head could be seen in the window. Bags had become to appear under her eyes on her face that had grown as white as a sheet. Tears were still streaming down her face and though she had gotten over most of the shock she felt like screaming, screaming for what she had ruined.

'_It's the disease of the age, it's the disease that we grave, alone at the end of the rain we catch the last bus home.'_ The lyrics ran through their ears. The band provided a small bit of comfort for her, they reminded her of Gaignun who got her into that music. He always had good music … Really good music she loved singing along to.

"Wedding bells ain't gonna chime, with both of us guilty of crime…" she whispered in an attempt to sing, feeling a lump in her throat dying to escape along with tears to her eyes. Her throat was still rough and raw to the point she could taste blood.

Her shaking finger ran across white gold engagement ring. Oh how she screwed it up! Everything, everything she had worked so hard for but why? Why did that happen? She could understand the thing with chaos; yeah she could understand that to some extent but murdering the entire restaurant? She didn't even want that! She didn't want to kill anyone and yet she did! Was she going crazy? Completely and utterly mad? What would Damion think of her now? What about Gabriel? Would he laugh in her face and call her the devil?

'_If so I'll kill him…'_ she thought in the back of her mind, shuddering immediately afterwards to get rid of the feeling. In the corner of her eye she could see chaos' blood stained hand type into the phone. Once he had done she heard the dreaded ringing noise as they awaited Gaignun to pick up. Anxiety flew through her veins as she realized they'd have to tell Gaignun. To take her mind off the pure fear she looked out of the window, watching the lights fly by. She had let everyone down. Everyone…

Just as the noise stopped she heard a fast "I know," from Gaignun on the other end of the phone. She winced hard, hunching her shoulders. "They told me just a few minutes ago. Where are you? Where is she?"

"We're in the car, Gaignun," chaos told him politely, looking at Faith with soft, assuring eyes. She reached to turn down the music in the car, looking at the phone as if it were a monster. "There is no safety for her at her home, is there?"

"None at all," he answered. The noise of a car door shutting reached through the phone, patting Faith's ears. "It's going to be near impossible to get her off the Foundation …"

"The Elsa is docked on the Foundation," chaos told him, making a sharp turn. "If we go to the Docking Station now we can get her off. She'll be safe on the Elsa; no one will think to look there."

"I've wrecked everything…" she whispered quietly, before suddenly slamming her fists on the dashboard in front of her. Shooting pain ran up her hands, even towards her elbow before it faded. "All fucking everything! Everything was fine and now it's not! You're meant to be God, what the fuck does God do now?! Huh?!" she yelled furiously at chaos, the hint of blue in her eyes brighter then the bit of gold like it had been earlier. "Cleanse me of my Sins, God, forgive me and take the fucking devil out of my body but no you can't can you?! Cause your fucking shit!"

"Faith!" she heard Gaignun yell suddenly through the phone, causing her to freeze. The anger suddenly disappeared as it always did, his voice seeping deep into her heart. Chaos stared at Faith who stared back, completely and utterly stunned by her outburst.

"Gaignun I think we need you here too …" he whispered, returning his gaze back to the road.

"I won't be long. Let me talk to Faith," he replied. Chaos wasted no time to hand her the phone, her now sore hands trembling furiously. Shaking, she put the phone to her ear and sat back on the chair, feeling tears run down her cheek.

"I'm sorry," she whispered through a small sob.

"Shh," he quietly said, making her bit her lip nervously as she attempted to get the tears to stop. "I'm sorry too. How was the food?"

Faith couldn't help but smirk slightly, moving her left hand to the window. She put her boiling hot skin on the cold material, watching as the rain began to fall from the sky. "You could cook better even in your sleep."

* * *

Hearing the disturbing beep of the Elsa informing him someone had entered the ship, Jr only groaned loudly as he slowed awakened, cursing the noise as he did as such. Not panicking, he knew it would have been chaos straight away – for starters he was the only one who had excess to the Elsa along with the other crew members and they were stirring in their sleep with Jr. In the dimly lit bedroom, Jr parted his eyes open slowly, wondering if anyone else was going to go investigate. Seeing the others stubbornly lying asleep in their beds, he groaned a second time, kicking the sheets messily from his childish body, feeling a cold breeze attack his bare olive skin. His slightly ruffled red hair was brushed down slightly as he put his feet on the soft carpet, bringing his arms above his head to stretch. Yawning, he pushed himself up to stand, scratching his head as he approached the bedroom door. Pushing the button for it to slide open, he was greeted with the blinding yellow light of the hallway. Shielding his eyes with his arm, he stumbled out of the bedroom, blinking furiously as he sleepily shut the door behind him to not disturb anyone else. Rubbing his eyes, he continued to blink, seeing the figure of chaos in the hall, just shutting the door. Jr's brows furrowed as he pulled his arm from his face, wincing from the light.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, what's goin' on here?" he sleepily asked; his words followed by a loud yawn as he finally adjusted his sight to get used to the light. Once it did he saw the slightly pained face of chaos, his once white dress shirt covered in blood and his bloody hand holding the trembling hand of Faith. Slowly, Jr's eyes drifted from chaos to Faith who had not long gotten off the phone with Gaignun. Her head was low as if she were about to fall asleep and she could barely stand upright, her balance a complete and utter mess. He could see under her messy hair her eyes were bloodshot, her face was streamed in her black eyeliner mingled with tears and blood. Her face was paler then he had ever seen it before, her lips parted as she heavily breathed. Blood splatters were going across her skin, some even in her hair. Their elegant attire was horribly bloody, like something out of a messed up horror movie. Faith acted like a zombie, not showing any emotions whatsoever; her tears had even ceased. She had entered shock now, her mind unsure of what to do apart from make her heart pump and her lungs breathe. Even though she was a full woman now, she looked nothing more then a young child clutching chaos' hand tightly to keep her balance.

"J-Jeez…" was all that could escape Jr's stunned mouth. He and chaos passed eye contact for a few long moments and even from the little emotion chaos shed Jr could understand what had happened. The worst had happened, what everyone feared. Faith had been found out. Gently, chaos pushed the smaller girl foreword a few steps, bringing the hand he held towards Jr slowly. He didn't hesitate to take her cold hand from chaos, moving her close to him. She shuffled slowly; trying her best to keep her balance as she was took into Jr's grip.

"Take her to the bathroom in the female quarters," chaos told him quietly; their voices delicate to Faith's ears though their words were a blur as she stood there, staring down at the ground. "Do we still have her cloths?"

"Y-Yeah of course," Jr nodded, trying his best not to stutter. He looked up at Faith who was a few inches taller then him, her skin boiling hot to the touch. He was unsure of what to say to her. Ask her how her birthday had gone? No, that was just stupid! Biting his lip, he shuffled from one foot to another before parting his lips. "You alright?"

Damn! He immediately scolded himself for his question, of course she wasn't alright, and anyone with eyes could see that. But, a few seconds after he saw her hair move as she nodded to his joy. Smiling slightly, Jr tightened his grip around her wrist and began to lead her gently to the female quarters. Chaos walked past him to the male room and it didn't take long for Jr and Faith to hear and irritated yell of Captain Mathews for being woken up so early. In the female quarters, Jr smirked, flicking on the light switch. He smiled brightly up at Faith when he led her into the bathroom, turning the light on for her again. Whatever happened wouldn't have been her fault. He didn't know her too well but she seemed to be a lovely person, rather opposite to Gaignun what with how hyper she could be but hey, opposites attract right? As long as his brother was happy Jr couldn't care less. Continuing to grin, he let go of her wrist and turned the sink taps on for her. He looked up to see her staring at the water and yet staring at nothing at all.

"Need any help, Fay?" he asked her kindly only to get a shake of her head in return. He nodded to this and began to walk away, keeping a careful eye on her for a moment. "I should go make sure a war doesn't start on the bridge. Come down when you're ready, yeah?"

Once he had left she numbly began to fumble around the taps, moving in front of the mirror. She stared at the reflection on the other side, not seeing her face but seeing what she could only describe as a monster. Sighing, she brought her eyes from her dreaded reflection and managed to find a cloth to clean herself with. Dampening it under the cold water she leaned foreword to the mirror and gently began to wash the blood off her cheeks, along with her thick black eyeliner that had created black marks on her face. She had screwed everything up, absolutely everything. She hated the reflection, hated her eyes, her nose, her lips, even her hair. This wasn't meant to be her. She wasn't meant to kill people, she didn't want to and yet she did. She was going to have everything … Why? Why did she wreck it? As she thought deeper and deeper into the situation she felt the tears begin to poke at her eyes again. Shaking her head, she forced them away. Crying wouldn't help anyone, not now, not ever. It would only help to her throbbing headache she died to get rid of and make her look even more horrible. As her eyes glanced down to her body in the mirror she suddenly snapped her head down, coughing into the sink as she held back the urge to throw up. There was so much blood it was foul. Shaking, she quickly tore the dress from her flesh, leaving her to stand in the bathroom wearing just her white bra and underwear. She didn't want to see anymore blood. No more blood. She just had to get clean. Biting her lip, she returned to the water.

"They are Gaignun Kukai's orders, Captain," chaos softly said as they approached the Bridge, Captain Mathew's walking quickly in a stubborn manner. He was grumbling to himself, cursing sharply now and then from being awoken so late in the night. Like Jr, he was dressed just in his boxers and hadn't the time to change properly. As they entered the Bridge, he moved over to a small draw in the corner, pulling out a cigarette and a lighter. Leaning back on the wall he began to light it, inhaling the toxic substance with pure joy plastered on his face. Chaos stayed on the other side of the Bridge, hating the scent of the smoke Mathews was so fond of. Just as he placed a dry, red hand to lean on the terminal, Hammer and Tony entered, looking more decent then Jr and Mathews – they had actually mustered the energy to get changed, though they looked still as sleepy as ever.

"Ugh, what's going on here?" yawned Tony as he sat down, eying the Captain and chaos up and down confused to the brim. "You do know it's like … one in the morning don't you?"

"Ask chaos here," Mathews roughly said, pointing his cigarette towards him. "Got orders from Master Gaignun to start the ship now to get to Miltia."

"What? We're doing that in the morning," Tony moaned, putting his feet up on a ledge. "Can't we do it then and get back to sleep?"

"Gaignun Kukai ordered for us to go now," chaos told him, with a slight shrug. "You can't really deny what he wants, can you?"

The crew members moaned and groaned, cursing at the fact they wouldn't be able to sleep. The door to the Bridge slid open as they continued to groan, Jr entering with a grin on his face. Chaos caught his attention immediately, beckoning him over.

"Is she okay?" he asked. Jr nodded.

"Yeah," he replied. "She's a little numb but other then that she seems fine enough. Where's Gaignun?"

"Should be here soon," chaos replied, knowing full well Faith would need him more then anyone else in the world. She wouldn't be herself without him being there. Just as he was about to sit down and Jr was about to leave to get changed, the beeping of the Elsa rang through their ears again. Sighing slightly, Jr waited for it to stop patiently and looked at the Bridge door just as it opened.

Another tired face walked into the room, his emerald gems scanning around almost urgently to find her. The raven headed man turned his attention to chaos and Jr, everyone sensing the seriousness emitting from his skin. He was dressed as he normally would be and hanging from his shoulder was a white bag, large and decorated with pictures of teacups and top hats – an Alice in Wonderland styled bag that obviously didn't belong to him. The urge to make a joke came to Jr but he held back, knowing it wasn't the best of times.

"Where is she?" he asked, his eyes bloodshot. Had he been … crying?

"In the bathroom," Jr replied faster then chaos. He nodded gratefully and before Captain Mathews could put a word in, Gaignun had left.

Jr looked around at everyone who looked slightly stunned by him entering and leaving with few words. "C'mon guys, lets get to Miltia!" he laughed, trying to lighten the mood.

It didn't take less then a minute for the raven headed man to quickly walk to the empty female quarters, hearing the tap running immediately. Dropping the bag that was crammed full with anything he could grab in a few minutes, he slowly edged his way to the bathroom, peeking his eye through the crack of the partially opened door. In the reflection of the mirror he could see her face was clean yet her eyes were still bloodshot, filled with pain. Biting his lip, he looked up and down her body. She was still unbelievably thin, no matter how much he got her to eat. The black dress he had brought her was on the floor carelessly, drowned in thick red blood. The floor was slightly stained in it, her shoes having been chucked to the other side too. Once he pushed the door open a little more, she suddenly gave him her attention. For a second she looked panicked, eyeing him carefully like he was a hungry monster. After a few minutes, he took a step foreword as she turned around fully. She tried to run to him but her legs wouldn't move properly, sending her to almost collapse to the floor like a sack of potatoes. Eyes widening, he reached out to grab her just as he knees bent and she clutched onto him tightly as she was pulled to stand up right. Tucking her face into his sweet smelling neck, she began to whisper apology after apology; his hand soothingly running through her hair.

"Shh, don't speak…" he told her, the soft fabric of his suit against her skin. He was holding her so close she could feel the pounding of his heart by her chest, feel his gentle, warm breath upon her cheek. His warm hands began to explore her bare back, the tips of his fingers outlining the shape of her spine, running over the bumps of her bones. He could feel her shiver slightly as he continued, placing his left hand on her hip, stroking her skin gently. "Can you feel that?" he whispered deep into her ear, allowing his breath to tickle her skin. He continued to move his hands in the same pattern for a few minutes and her second quiver granted him a silent 'yes'. "Just feel, don't talk, just feel everything."

"Ah …" she couldn't help but part her lips as his landed on her neck, nibbling gently at her most sensitive skin. As he continued to nip and kiss her neck she felt herself returning slowly, the feelings of his touches awakening her like she had been asleep. The numb, emotionless feeling had slowly gone off her as she moved her small hands to his arms, gripping tight to his sleeves as he ran a hand up her back to gently massage the back of her neck. Craning her neck for him, she felt the tips of her hair tickle her back along with his fingers. His other firm hand that had been set on her hip travelled back up her skin, before stopping on the clasp of her bra.

"Don't even think," he told her, his voice vibrating against her hollow neck. Gently, slowly, he unclasped her bra, still holding the fabric to her frail body. Pulling away, he gently pulled the clothing from her. For a moment she was nervously stood there, her arms folded slightly to cover herself as he took a few seconds to remove his jacket.

Once he had done he looked at her and sighed. "Don't be so nervous, you're a beautiful woman," he told her assuredly as he gently moved her arms back down. He rested them on his bare arms and kissed the small gap between her breasts causing her to squirm and giggle, making him smile. He planted loving kisses upon her chest and her slightly concave stomach, feeling her squirm in delight. Running a hand through his raven hair, she began to blush furiously, looking down at her lover with her bright eyes once more. He looked up at her and gave her an affectionate smile. He planted a few more affectionate kisses down her stomach and her hips before taking her gently in his arms. Tenderly, he brought her down onto the floor, leaning her back against the side of the bath. He reached in to kiss her passionately, feeling her hands move up his own bare back, around his neck and through his soft hair. He purred, putting a finger just under her underwear. Pulling from the kiss, he made his nose touch hers as he whispered, running his spare finger across her heated cheek.

"Forget whatever you saw, Faith…" he told her, taking off her last piece of clothing as she whimpered nervously, feeling her heart pounding. Her blood was gushing through her body and she felt something she believed she wouldn't ever feel. She felt good. Extravagant, over the moon! Astoundingly amazing. She enjoyed the heat of her blushing face, the warmth of Gaignun surrounding her. She could feel heat on her lower half, followed by a stinging pain and something she couldn't ever describe no matter how many times she felt it. Arching her back, she whimpered, feeling his hot breathe against her cheek. "Just feel this …" he ran a hand through her hair, feeling her bone thin hips against his. "I love you, Faith. I love you …"

"I love you too," she whispered, feeling her breathes become heavy pants as he wrapped his arms around her much smaller body. Her mind was spinning with joy. It wouldn't be terrible. Life wouldn't be terrible. She still had him … That was all that mattered; her and Gaignun.

Once they had done, she had fallen asleep then and there in pure exhaustion. He looked down at his innocent angel and smiled, reaching down to peck her forehead. Taking a hand from her back he ran it across her stomach thoughtfully, his smile still upon his face. For long moments, even after he had pulled out and put his trousers back on properly, he held her, admiring how small, how fragile she was. Sometimes he would let a soft figure run across one of her pale scars, causing her to stir slightly in her slumber. Eventually, he stood to his feet, carrying her out to the quarters with him. He lay her on her favourite bed and searched through her drawers, grabbing clean cloths for her. Like he had done many times, he dressed her as she slept in her white nightgown and tied her hair back gently. He lifted the sheets to put her in the bed properly with ease and reached down to kiss her stomach and then peck her lips gently. Tucking her under the warm sheets properly he smiled wider.

"I'll be back in a moment," he whispered, kissing her forehead. He moved her hair from her face lovingly before walking away.

As the raven headed man entered the Bridge, Jr and chaos glanced at him with a faint smile each. Chaos was the one to turn around fully to him, still stained in blood. He hadn't the chance to change and get clean unlike Faith, nor did he want to just yet. He wanted to make sure she was fine. With some concern on his face, he looked at Gaignun carefully.

"Is she resting now?" he asked, knowing it would be odd for Gaignun to leave her in a state. He was here alone, meaning she was most likely better at least now, which was good. He nodded to his question.

"Yes, she is," he said, unable to hide a slight smile on his face. Jr caught his eye as he looked across the bridge and grinned widely, winking at his younger brother.

"Score, huh?" he asked, raising a brow as he bite his lip – his entire face showing playful excitement. He was still dressed in his boxers, goose bumps appearing on his skin from the cold. A slight blush appeared on his face as he looked away from Jr and to Captain Mathews.

"Where is our destination?" he asked him solemnly, seeing Jr bouncing up and down in the corner of his eye.

"Gaignun scored, you little dog," he laughed in the background. Gaignun frowned slightly at his older brother's childish behaviour and tried to ignore it as best he could.

"We're headed straight for Miltia, Sir, just as you ordered," Mathews replied roughly, obviously unhappy with being woken up in the middle of the night to follow orders he didn't want to. Gaignun nodded and began to pace slightly, putting a finger on his lip. The Foundation had no control of what when on in Miltia and it wouldn't seem so strange for him to travel there. They had no idea where Faith would be and Damion was there. Yes, it seemed the better idea – better then travelling to another planet. Then The Foundation government would get suspicious. But whatever he said went, right? Gaignun would be in no danger.

"How are you going to get away with being on here?" Jr suddenly asked, breaking his brother's trail of thought. He eyed him up and down carefully, smirking slightly at the fact he wore no shirt and his hair was slightly ruffled.

'_You scored! Dirty. Little. Dog and she fell asleep from it? Jeez, you must pack a punch,'_ he mentally told him, laughing. Gaignun groaned at this and shook his head, pausing for a moment to contain his own thoughts.

"Easy," he answered, smiling at Jr slyly. "You're sick."

"I'm not sick! I don't look sick!" he yelled at his brother, stepping foreword a step challengingly. Glaring sharply, meeting his gaze with a large grin from Gaignun. As he put his hands on his hips, mentally mocking Gaignun in a playful way about him scoring he was so caught up he didn't see Gaignun's hand until shooting pain came from his nose and he could feel a liquid run down past his chin. Instantly, he reached up to cover his bleeding nose Gaignun had spectacularly hit, stumbling back slightly. He glared hard. "You bastard!"

"There, now you're sick," Gaignun smirked, turning from his whining brother.

"This doesn't make me sick!" he yelled at him. "This makes it abuse! How does this make me sick? Do I look sick? I look like I've just been slugged!"

"Freak nose bleeds, Jr," he smiled. _'Next time, don't tease me and yup, I do pack a punch,'_ he mentally passed playfully.

'_TEASE Gaignun! You slugged me! Slugged!'_ he glared once more before walking from the bridge in a childish rage. Gaignun only smiled slightly before turning to chaos.

"What are we going to do with Faith…?" he asked, not really wanting to know the answer.

"I was planning to take her back to her brother's home," he answered. "It's … not the most ideal situation but Damion will be there too …"

"And you?" he asked carefully. "I can't stay there. It would look too suspicious and I have my work to do. When things calm down I can go to her but for now I can't. I don't want her to be left with her brother."

"I can stay with her," he nodded, smiling faintly. "Of course, Gaignun."

Gaignun sighed, putting his finger on his temple, trying to hold back a thudding headache. "Do you have any idea why she can … Why this happens?"

Lowering his eyes, chaos shook his head. "I've not got a clue. I apologise, Master Gaignun."

Just as he parted his lips to speak the Bridge door slid open, gaining Gaignun and chaos' attention at the same time. Stood in the door frame was Faith, looking like a small child, dizzy and not in with the world from how tired she was. Putting her hand on the doorframe, she took a moment to gain her balance, her eyes looking from chaos to Gaignun. A stream of tears had begun to run down her cheeks, her body trembling.

"Faith, what is it?" Gaignun gently asked, moving over to her as he wrapped a hand around hers.

"There's …" she paused, blinking a few times. "Something in the mirror and its not me."

**[[… End Comments …]]** uuhhhh … if anyone actually HAD the attention span to read this entire chapter, then kudos to you!! You just read 8,760 words of a rambling fifteen year old that can't really write to save her life. WHOOP! Seriously though … I think I've over done this chapter. I've never wrote so much for a chapter before and I know it had a lot of potential and I sucked it DRY, DRY I SAY, and I didn't give it enough taste of flavour but oh well. Maybe there can be a better version of this chapter someday and hopefully won't be as long. And btw, don't expect anymore sex scmemes anymore XD I hate writing them. I was thinking "OMG CAN I ACTUALLY WRITE THIS?!!"

Right, here's a little fact – by the end of writing this chapter I still haven't wrote the end of Bitter Sweet yet. I'll be off to write that, then I'll carry on being bedridden and sick. And yeah, if the final Bitter Sweet chapter gets more then 500 words I'll be amazed XD I just got bored Dx

EDIT:: The end of BS I is at the end of an edited chapter … 31 I think. Yeah I got lazy P I'm sowwieee hopefully this chapter made up for it :3 xxx && even tho its near the end of the day ill carry on being bedridden and sick lol [btw I AM sick so please don't kill me if this is terrible ;_;] I finish school in less then … No wait, I leave two weeks tomorrow meaning more updates and more stories! Plus I have more Xeno vids to do, including one for Ashy that I really have to finish soon 3 xxx


	34. Disappointment

***Please Read* - Katy-Rose will return properly in six weeks, for now fics will be updated as often as possible and I'll be replying to messages. Not well at the moment, hence the terrible chapters and lack of updates and the thought of not coming back lol xD**

**.| Chapter Thirty-Four |.**

**Disappointment**

_My body is a cage that keeps me from dancing with the one I love, but my mind holds the key,_

_I'm standing on a stage of fear and self doubt; it's a hollow place,_

_Standing next to me, my mind holds the key,_

_Set my body free, set my spirit free._

_Terrible chapter Dx_

Faith's eyes grazed Gaignun's body as she pushed her back against the wall; the two men investigating the mirror; looking behind it, into it; touching it and moving it. She clutched her blanket tighter around her body, the ends of the soft material wrapping around her ankles. In the well lit female quarters she felt as vulnerable as ever; tears wanting to run from her eyes yet she wouldn't allow them to; she wouldn't cry anymore. There was a thing in the mirror; something she couldn't quite describe but it was a thing, no doubt. With what looked like shadowed skin that waved about like water; the figure being greyish black that seemed almost transparent. It had taken her entire reflection, only showing her form, but when the others, Rubedo, Gaignun and even chaos had looked into the glass they only saw themselves staring back; nothing more. Rubedo was immediately dismissive, saying she was just tired and had imagined something, making some sexual joke about Gaignun at the same time, causing Faith to yell at him. He left, returning to bed in a sleepy haze as Gaignun and chaos stayed behind with her. Gaignun was obviously unsure of what she had seen, wanting to put it down to her being sleepy as well but chaos was the one most intrigued. She was thankful for not being doomed crazy, but still she wanted to prove to them it had been there. Instead she was cowering in the corner of the room, trembling like she was in the presence of Albedo. Eventually, after half an hour at least, chaos left, kissing her head softly. Gaignun walked to her and offered to remove the mirror but she just shook her head silently, afraid he would find her completely and utterly mad. Instead all she did was walk over to her bed and sit on the end of it, playing with the blanket. She couldn't help but smirk slightly. "Did you know twenty-one is a number of perfection by excellence, according to the bible?" she asked, her eyes glazed as Gaignun sat by her; their backs touching. "It's a symbol for the great spiritual Masters of humanity; a number that can represent the harmony of nature…" she paused slightly. "And on the night I turn into such a pure number…I kill … an entire room full of people…"

Gaignun looked down, unsure of how to comfort her. All he could do was slide his hand over to hers, clasping it tight with his much larger fingers. She could feel his flesh trembling, making her feel a shot of guilt in her heart. For more then a year now she had put this man under so much strain. He had told her before that he was too nervous to date women and she was his first proper relationship; the others landing in shambles because of his lack of emotion; he was unable to open up to them, meaning nothing went past a second date. This man who lived for numbers finally found someone to talk to; to be himself with and she was throwing it back into his face by being how she was? She hated herself for it. He deserved far more, so why did he spend such painful time with her? Or…if she looked at it differently, did that show how much he cared? Because he went through everything with her, forgave her for everything and never once yelled at her (save for that time in the woods of the Institute, but that wasn't his fault at all, plus she had hurt him once he had …) could that mean that he cared for her more then she could understand? Thinking of this she smiled on the inside, tightening her fingers around his hand. She looked up into his eyes and smiled, but her lips parted against her will. The words that tumbled out of her mouth were words she didn't want to say.

"For Claude of Saint Martin, the number twenty-one is actually the number of destruction, or rather of universal termination. This number shows at the same time of the command of the production of things, and their end," she gave a small smirk before freezing. Her eyes widened as she realised what she had said. As she spoke again, she stumbled over her words. "I-I did…d-didn't even know that…G-Gaignun, I didn't-" he cut her off by putting a hand at her mouth. Smiling as kindly as he could he leaned down to speak to her; his voice as soft as silk.

"Hush now, lets just go to sleep," he smiled, moving his hand from her mouth to her stomach, caressing her through her white shirt gently. "You need to rest now."

"Believe me," she told him quickly. "Believe me that I didn't say it."

"I do," he told her solemnly; pausing to look into her eyes to prove to her he did. "I always believe you. Anything you say."

* * *

When Gaignun awoke the next morning, he left Faith in the sheets, gathered his things and went for a show. Silently he left the room, leaving her to sleep there peacefully. He entered the dining area in the back of the Elsa, seeing the others were awake too; already to go, although they wouldn't be docking for at least eight more hours. He sat down opposite Rubedo and chaos, smiling as one of the droids placed a hot cup of black coffee in front of him. Lifting the mug, he sipped at it slowly, his emerald gems glazed in thought. The others were quiet; like a death had occurred within a group of friends. Eventually people began to talk, and a few hours later a clean, refreshed Faith emerged; her hair curled into ringlets. She smiled and almost the room was lifted in joy from her presence and people began to talk again. But when Gaignun toyed with her hair, he noticed her roots had completely changed. Now, there was little pink; extremely little; only a few highlights here and there. He thought for a few moments silently what could have happened, remembering how over time the pink had faded from her hair. Was such a thing a warning or a notice that her powers were growing stronger? As to not panic the girl, he mentioned nothing of it, only telling chaos when he got a few moments with him.

Quickly, the hours passed and next thing Faith knew was that she was sitting on the step of the horrible house in the evening, trembling hard in Gaignun's arms as chaos went inside; speaking to Damion and Gabriel. At times she could hear Gabriel shouting but his words were muffled. Once she heard something smash and then everything went horribly quiet. All she could do was wait. Wait, wait, wait.

"Faith?" chaos asked gently, his hand softening over the top of her bare arm. She turned to him; her eyes trembling as Gaignun wrapped another hand around the one he was holding. Chaos couldn't help but feel pained as he noticed the fear within her eyes; wishing he could take it all away. He would find a reason for why she was how she was; he would bring out the true, amazing Faith for all of them to see. One day soon he would. Faith's double-toned eyes glanced at the doorway leading into the house of horrors, seeing the darkened hallway lined with pictures. She could see the figure of Gabriel sat upon the stairs; watching her intently with eyes that she couldn't see. She knew exactly what was hidden in those gems; hatred, disappointment and of course joy for the pain she was suffering with. As she was helped to her feet, she almost stumbled back down to the ground, hardly blinking as chaos placed a hand on her shoulder; Gaignun moving his hand to wrap around her waist. The tips of his fingers rubbed the edges of her sensitive stomach, smirking when he felt her flesh quiver. She took a step foreword with the aid of her friends, stepping into the house. When the door was shut behind her, her heart skipped a beat painfully. Her eyes glanced at Gabriel, for a moment, who had a pile of three sheets on his lap, along with a quilted patch blanket that she recognised. All were folded into perfectly neat squares, and his elbow leaned on the blanket, his face on the hand as he too looked almost pained. He wore a typical white dress shirt, along with black trousers and black shoes, which were tapping against the floorboards of the old, Victorian-styled house almost impatiently. Gaignun and chaos led her past Gabriel and into the first room on the left; the kitchen. When they entered, Faith could smell the sweet scent of fresh fruits and toast, along with a smell of coffee and tea. Leaning against the wooden counters was Damion, who held his hand to his chest; his attire as typical as ever and his face almost aching. It was only then she realised the cloud of silence that had overcome the house; a silence she knew so well as if a family member had died. The silence was so strong; it could have stabbed her if it were a knife. It was just like being a child again, as she was being seated by chaos at the table and before she knew it Damion was handing her a mug of her favourite warm drink; hot chocolate, while Gaignun got coffee and chaos got tea. Gaignun sat opposite her, rubbing her hand gently with his own; trying to comfort her. She stared at the wooden table near the door, wondering where her life would lead her now.

Breaking the silence was the sound of the kitchen door reopening; the creak slicing through the thick fog of stillness. Faith didn't turn her head but in the corner of her eye she could see Gabriel coming to the table; clinging just the quilt against his chest like a lost, hurt child. For a moment he stood there, before slowly taking the seat beside her. She winced slightly, but watched in the corner of her vision as his shaking hands began to fumble at the quilt; twisting the fabrics. It had unfolded in his hands; the ends of the blanket grazing the floorboards at their feet. Slowly, he wrapped his left hand around the blanket, pulling it up from the ground. She could see different patches of quilted patterns on it; the blanket something from childhood. Somewhere in the blanket they had put their names; Faith and Gabriel and the meanings, but she couldn't see that part of the blanket.

"Home…" he whispered slowly; his throat dry while he began to fumble with the blanket even more with the tips of his fingers. "…is where you will be accepted no matter what has happened or what has changed…" with his left hand, the one closest to Faith, he slowly placed half the blanket over her lap, sharing the warmth with her. She could see his hands trembling more then her heart was. "This is your home," he told her, turning his head to her. She looked him in the eye; looking deep into his chocolate coloured gems. "But … that thing inside of you…" he whispered. "This is not it's home, and we're going to get it out of you," she wasn't sure whether to take his wording well or not; but decided not to say anything in return. He leaned in to whisper another sentence into her ear; "That lady wasn't my mother either," he told her, making her hands tremble. "We're magical people, Faith, we don't have parents; we only have each other. There's just an evil thing inside of you trying to take control of your powers," when he pulled back he grinned like the Cheshire cat at her. The life seemed to return to her as chaos and Gaignun passed looks to one another; unsure of what Gabriel was saying. Even chaos was confused, who thought of the two people to be utterly ordinary (save for Faith's powers, and Gabriel's but he thought nothing of their origin – only thought of them to be born like any other person but with something special). Her brows furrowed as she wrapped her cold fingers around the warm mug of her hot chocolate.

"My," she whispered; her words strong as they used to be. "I never thought you would give me sentences without vulgar language directed towards me. Is this truly you, Gabriel or are you not well?"

"Don't mock me, rat," he hissed; his own life returning again as he began to glare into her eyes, thinking he was looking into the eyes of whatever he thought lay within her. "I care for my sister, not for you."

"Well guess what, Gabriel," she whispered. "I am your sister no matter what you think. I get irritated, I get _pissed_ and I care for what people feel but I _will_ speak my mind, for I am sick of people either screaming at me or beating me or thinking wrong of me. I am caring but I'm ruthless. Your words were utterly stupid; you expect me to believe that we weren't birthed?" her voice was calm and collected as she spoke. "That's complete nonsense. Yeah, we're a little different to most people; hell even Gaignun is different to people, and I wouldn't be surprised if Damion could pull a donkey out of a hat, but we're not God's. Maybe we're infected. Me more so. Maybe I'm like Albedo…maybe I'm going crazy…maybe…"

"You're not like this, Faith," he told her sharply. "Yeshua told me that when you attacked the restaurant last night that it seemed like something took over you, do you even remember what happened?" he asked her. All she could do was shake her head. "Well then; it just proves it! You couldn't have gotten infected if you were always like this. When we were kids you always used to ki-"

"Stop this nonsense!" she yelled, her hands tightening so tight around the cup she felt the tips of her fingers burning from the heat; her fingers trembling. "I'm me!" she screamed as hard as she could. "I'm a fucking blood thirsty murderer, just as you said when we _were_ kids! Stop telling me something's inside of me! Okay, fair enough; we have different parents to what we thought we did; maybe our biological parents were fucking wimps and left us, but stop it!" she had torn the blanket from her legs, throwing the entire thing to the ground. "Maybe, maybe I'm a reincarnation of the devil, would that make you happy? Or maybe I _am_ the Reapers Assistant and you are really the other hand of God. But that's _impossible_!" the confusion in her heart was so powerful she ended up punching the wooden table, before throwing the mug into the wall; making it crash into thousands of shards; the hot chocolate dripping to the floor. When was Gabriel so kind to her? When did he believe such stupid, stupid theories and what, oh God, what was wrong with her? She knew, she _knew_ that it wasn't her when she had killed all those people in the past. Those times she had gone 'crazy' weren't her either, but to have someone else inside of her? Now that was-

Gaignun.

Time seemed to have frozen as she remembered Gaignun and his father; the man that had entered his body on numerous occasions to interfere with his life. They still hadn't gotten to the bottom of the reasons; Faith had thought at one point perhaps it was his father taking revenge for Gaignun murdering him but such a thing seemed impossible. Could people really come back from the dead and invade a person's body? And if such a thing were true, why and who was in Faith? It seemed almost possible, the more she began to think about it. Were they finally coming to the end of a mystery that had been going on for just over twenty years? Oh God she prayed so; she prayed she could grab the last bit of her life that she had left before it was completely taken from her.

"Fine," Gabriel finally said. Faith's head was turned from him; Gaignuns hands wrapped around her own, furiously trembling ones as he sat there, unsure of what to do. Chaos was already clearing up, hoping she wouldn't have an outburst. If she wanted, she could have killed them all and it seemed not even Gaignun was doing the greatest to calm her down this time. "I tried to forgive you for your Sins. I tried to reason and to understand you but maybe I am right. Maybe you _are the_ Reapers Assistant; or even the Reaper itself," he smirked, standing up; taking the blanket with him. "Despite being brother and sister, we will forever be mortal enemies," and with that line, he left the kitchen; leaving the four of them in there. Damion stood awkwardly at the counter, unsure of what to do as chaos watched Faith in his peripheral vision. A tear rolled down her cheek, immediately wiped away by Gaignuns finger.

Slowly, Gaignun leaned across the table, sliding his left hand onto her right arm; his fingers caressing her skin softly. Her fingers tightened around his right hand, preventing it from moving, even though he desperately wanted to run it through her hair; knowing such an action would calm her down. He compromised, leaning foreword to kiss her red head, keeping his lips against her hair for a minute or two. Overcast by his figure, she closed her eyes, pretending all the world was just him and her; the pair of them and nothing more. Giving another kiss on the side of her head, he made his way down to her ear, whispering gently to her. "I can…I can make you feel calm," he told her softly. "I can take the anger away from you if you want to…"

"It won't count as me being …not me?" she questioned; her voice as soft as silk. She could feel her heart pounding painfully from the anger and confusion, wishing for it to go away. Gaignun shook his head, moving his left hand to the collar of her shirt.

He looked into her eyes questionably, making her nod. He slipped the cold hand underneath her white shirt, causing her to shiver from his touch. In awkwardness, chaos turned to walk to Damion; starting a conversation with him as he placed the broken mug into the bin. Once Gaignun found her heart under his fingertips, he leaned his forehead on hers, shutting his eyes when she did. As his fingers began to glow a faint emerald shade; the light running through her shirt, he could feel the anger and confusion, causing his hand to tighten around hers as he felt the emotions like they were his own. Another emotion passed through him; a line of fear that he could feel physically as her fingers began to tremble. She breathed inwards sharply, feeling what she could only describe as them becoming truly one. Despite the wonderful fact of them joining in a way no other couple had been able to, she couldn't help but feel scared of the prospect that in a few moments she would be engulfed in calamity. Would it hurt? Would it feel strange? In her ears she could hear Gaignun hushing her as he linked them together. The tips of Faith's left fingers began to glow a faint emerald shade; unknown to both of them. Emotions from him came into her body; things from stress to concern to a feeling of care that overcame ever other emotion. Was this what he felt? Pure care for her? Gaignun frowned as he felt hers; the fear, the confusion, the love and finally as he stabilised their connection he felt something that was not Faith at all. It was a feeling of pure hatred; a cruelty even Albedo didn't have. It was as if he connected with what he could only describe as a Demon; something so dark and horrifying. Just as he tried to remove this emotion from her, a sharp feeling ran from his fingers touching her chest to his heart; the words '_leave me!'_ echoing through his mind. Gasping, he felt the connection between Faith and him breaking uncontrollably; leaving him to become overcome with hopelessness and fear. He jumped back the second he felt the emotion, as if something just literally pushed him. The glows immediately subsided as his hand snapped from her flesh. Faith's eyes were wide in horror as she too felt the same feeling he had experienced, leaving her to sit there with her eyes wide open; her body trembling hard.

"I t-though you said…" she whispered, taking her hand from him. They were both breathing heavily; grabbing the attention of the other pair in the room. They had both experienced the same thing and heard the same voice; the voice that didn't belong to Faith. She felt even worse then she had done before, and she couldn't imagine how terrible Gaignun felt. In panic, she grabbed her wrist, tightening her fingers around her bone. "There's something in me isn't there? Gabriel's right! Get it out, get it out!" she began to frantically pull at her skin, her fingers trembling more then they had done before. A feeling of disgust and panic came about her as she thought of something crawling in her mind; pulling certain levers to cause her to feel how she did. Quickly, Gaignun snapped her wrists around his hands, pulling her arms apart.

"It's alright," he whispered as gently as he possibly could to her as she began to fidget, begging him to get 'it' out of her. He repeated his words, leaning his head on her forehead as she began to thrash against his tight grip. "I can get it out. We can get it out," he promised her. "But we need to do an Encephalon dive. I can't do anything," those four words caused his heart to skip a beat; he couldn't protect his angel as much as he wanted to. But he couldn't help but feel relived. Was this the answer they had all been waiting for? The answer that could be their happy ending? It was the most obvious answer to her problems. While everyone had been blind, chasing after Faith as the causer, they hadn't looked outside the box. Gabriel was the only one who had thought right between them; did he know the answer the entire time when he spat cruel words at her? He couldn't have come up with the reason to Faith's behaviour straight away, surely. Gabriel knew everything from day one, he had to have done.

After some minutes, she began to settle; tears running silently down her face as she closed her eyes. Gaignun's hands loosened but he wouldn't let go of her. He began to kiss the tears away from her face, assuring her it would all be okay and that he would fix her; that they would fix her. Somewhere, tucked in the corner of his heart, was joy; joy that he could do something for her, and when he provided some sort of proof to the government, he could get her name free. Chaos took a small step foreword, unsure of what to say or what to do.

"Possession," he finally said, grabbing just Gaignun and Damion's sight. "Demonic Possession is supposed to be a myth but could such a thing be what is inside of her?" he questioned. "What was it you felt, Gaignun?" it hadn't taken chaos long to figure out the situation, especially from the words they had shared and the theory Gabriel had.

"The darkest feeling of hopelessness I had ever felt before," he replied, moving to sit beside Faith. When he had done, he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her into his lap. She tucked her face in the crook of his neck, her arms tight around his shoulders. One of his hands was on the nape of her neck; the other in her hair; twisting it between his fingers soothingly. "It told me to leave," he held her tighter, feeling more then sorry for the fact if the horrifying voice decided to speak she would be able to hear it. It was like a nightmare was constantly within her.

"I can't see this being a joke by someone," Damion said, shaking her head. "At least not one that has gone on for this long. I …" he paused for a moment. "I only saw Faith when she was at around three or four years of age. They had a room for her that didn't even seem to have been lived in, until I saw her," he continued. He sighed, placing a hand on his forehead. "I should have known something was strange…"

"Nothing is your fault," chaos said, smiling. "I feel terrible for not thinking of possession, rather then thinking the problem was Faith herself," he paused for a moment before shaking his head. "Gaignun, how did it feel? Did it feel real?"

"Real," he replied, nodding as he did. "I …" he smirked slightly. "I've no idea how a Demon is meant to feel, but it wasn't something placed inside of her, like artificial emotion. It's most definitely real."

"Get it out…" she whispered, snapping her head up to chaos who was stood at the counter. "You're meant to be God, get it out of me!"

"We can't do anything for you now, Faith," Gaignun whispered, trying to keep her calm; he couldn't have her snapping again like she had done. "Please, I'll get you into an Encephalon dive as soon as possible. I promise. I swear I will. If there's something inside of you we'll have to go inside to fix you."

Her fingers tightened around his shirt, her head lowering again as she began to whisper into his ear. "Don't leave me…"

"I won't," he promised, moving to kiss the side of her head.


	35. Help I'm Alive!

**.| Chapter [Thirty-Five] |.**

**Help I'm Alive**

**& My Heart Keeps Beating Like A H a m m e r !**

**:: .. Comments:** Surprise, surprise, I kinda like this chapter XD There's a bit wrong here and there but nawr well =P Two BitterSweet chapters in about a week! *gasp* and are we slowly closing to the end of the story? I sort of hope so! Though I'm going to be so sad at the end because we all know that Gaignun dies in Xenosaga but I could do something there, but I don't know whether adjusting the actual storyline still classes it as fanfiction xD Oh well, I think I took the whole fan thing out of this thing anyway, especially since Gaignun is SO out of character here (two outbursts in ONE chapter? That makes four in the entire story so far XD Whoopsie :3).

BTW click on the link in my Profile; it leads to a Gaignun video, sqeee~ 8D

_[[.. C o m e through the D o o r :: a d a r k e n e d room ..]]_

_She draws w h i t e lines to set the m o o d :_

_We conversate, drink our wine: she kissed my lips and checked the time,_

_We went out to a better place, a different crowd that's more her taste,_

_She blended in, and I don't see all the secrets that she keeps,_

_My back is up against the wall,_

_You can't see lies when lights are off,_

_How could you leave, how could you go, I can't be buried here alone,_

_I float over you._

With her eyes that were slowly mixing back to their old form of colour, Faith watched Gaignun quietly as he worked away at his laptop in her small bedroom; his moving fast with the stylus gripped by his firm fingers that seemed so strong they could possibly break the stylus in two, or so Faith thought. He looked ever so peculiar in her light coloured cherry room that had patterns of lilies upon the walls floral bedding and cute teddies here and there. He was sat at her wooden desk near the window seat, his workspace surrounded by childish drawings and toys, along with a small music box that had her name printed on it in italic writing. She had to admit she was shocked when she learnt her room was exactly the same as it had been left, especially as she was under the illusion that her family had moved home; it was only when her memories became clearer when she realised how things were the same; that they had decided to stay in what she thought was the death house. They had even kept her room intact, though she had a feeling that was Damion's doing, the sweet man. Part of her wished it hadn't been intact; that it was all plain and boring, not exactly how she had left it as the memories seemed to flash by in her eyes, especially when she fell asleep the previous night; her slumber drenched in nightmares as if they were attached to her. Faith shuffled on the window seat slightly, adjusting her white, knee length dress she had fished out of her wardrobe. The fabric was light; the sleeves only barely covering her shoulders, and despite the cold weather, she didn't complain once about the chill. She wasn't even wearing socks to cover her feet, which caused Gabriel to call her an idiot earlier in the day but she thought nothing of it, carrying on with what she wanted to do. She had to admit to herself though that her left arm that was leaning against the window was as cold as ice; so cold that her bones had become stiff from it. Pulling her arm from the window, she pushed her back against the wall; her feet opposite her on the window seat, cushioning against the soft lilac fabrics. The white curtains brushed against her curled locks, yet she made no attempt to move them, turning her head from Gaignun to the world outside. The sky was a deep shade of grey; the clouds looking heavy as they carried the snow within them, struggling to keep it up in the air. The woods looked horribly creepy; the branches of the trees bare from leaves, making them look scrawny and thin as if they were slowly dying. Near the woods Faith could just about see Gabriel hovering over their 'mothers' grave, looking like a lost little puppy. Sighing, she turned her head from the window and back to Gaignun, watching his face screw up in concentration. She couldn't help but wonder _how_ he was getting away with not being at the Foundation, especially with her on the run. He had come up with the excuse Rubedo was seriously ill, landing himself within a Miltia Hospital, and with the help of Rubedo he faked the documents, pretending he was genuinely there and sent them to Helmer, telling him he would work from the hospital, not wanting to leave Rubedo on his own while he was sick. Still, someone had to have been suspicious of his actions, or they were just utterly blind. Lifting her head, she stopped her thoughts as she looked at the clock sitting above her head, the arms ticking past three o'clock in the afternoon. For two hours they had sat in silence, Faith reminiscing about things, while Gaignun silently worked. Never had she shared such a long silence with someone without feeling the need to speak, but she supposed that showed how comfortable they were with one another. Their last conversation consisted of Gaignun telling her that Shion and Allen were going to bring the equipment for the Encephalon dive; the only two people they could trust to bring it to them. It would apparently take a number of days, but he prayed silently that she wouldn't get any worse then she was. They both knew that if the thing within her wanted to it could kill everyone in the house so quickly no one would have guessed what would have happened.

Parting her slightly dry lips, Faith broke the silence with her soft voice that was just over a light whisper. "Gaignun," was the only word she said, taking a moment for him to turn to her with his bright emerald gems; them almost dancing as he gave her attention. Her pale lips curled inwards slightly as she continued her sentence. "Do you want to play a game?"

Stunned for a moment, he just stared at her, his mind working quickly to think of what she had said. When he figured it out after a few seconds, he looked down at his work, contemplating things. A large, almost hurtful sigh escaped from the back of his throat as he put his fingers to his temple; the stylus he held still between his fingers; the tip grazing across his forehead. "I …" he ground out, wanting to spend time with her yet needing to get his work finished. Though he knew no one would be irritated with him for missing some work as his supposed son was ill, he didn't want to miss out and fall behind. As she waited penitently, she played with her fingers nervously, her mind already deciding that he would say no. His black brows softened as he lowered his fingers, dropping the stylus softly on her desk, turning his head to her as he gave a small smile. "What kind of game?" he asked softly.

Faith's eyes widened as a terrible thought crossed over her mind, causing her to flap her arms like she was a bird learning to fly; her hands shaking as she shook her head once. "I don't mean a bad game!" she quickly said, her eyes clouded with childish innocence; her actions so cute to watch Gaignun couldn't help but smirk though he was slightly confused by her outburst. "Not a grown up game," she paused, her arms stopping in their movements as she laughed to herself slightly; her cheeks burning a bright red shade. "Now that makes me sound like I'm five…" she moaned, her voice drenched in embarrassment. "Oh!" she moaned again from the embarrassment, covering her burning face with her small hands, shutting her eyes tightly as she felt her heart pounding quickly against her chest. Gaignun was laughing softly from her actions; his own heart dancing from her lovely childish behaviour that seemed _very_ Faith; the real Faith. Standing to his feet, he moved over to the window seat slowly. When he placed a hand on her knee, sitting beside her feet, he winced slightly, feeling the cold of her skin against his own. He didn't think of her like an idiot as Gabriel had done but he certainly though that wearing a summer dress wasn't the wisest thing to do in the winter weather. Hovering his hand back in the air, he wrapped one hand around each of her wrists, slowly bringing her hands from her red face, causing her to part her eyes gradually. Biting her lip she blushed as he leaned in to peck her cheek; his lips warm and soft against her stone cold skin.

"I knew what you meant, Faith," he told her, smiling wider as he pulled away, still clutching her wrists even though they were far from her face by then. Gently, with both thumbs he caressed her skin, feeling the bumps of her bones against him, causing her to smile though the blush stayed in place. "What do you want to play?"

"I dunno," she laughed; her eyes sticking to his like superglue. She wondered what married couples played, apart from those 'adult' games she didn't want to have anything to do with (those types of things were so scary they almost gave her a heart attack just thinking about them). Biting her lip gently all she could think of was playing either hide and seek (which wouldn't work because if Gabriel caught her running around the house he'd probably throttle her and then a war would start again and she honestly didn't feel like clearing up his blood that day…) or catch outside. "Catch, tennis, football…" she muttered, causing him to tilt his head to the side. He hadn't really played games like that when he was a child, which nerved him slightly.

"I don't really mind Faith," he told her, smiling gently as he did.

"Right, then lets play catch," she said, getting up onto her feet, causing Gaignun to stand as well. He finally let go of her wrists, letting her drop her arms to the side and just as she reached for her trainers he grabbed her attention with a quick call of her name.

"You'll catch a cold out like that," he told her seriously, causing her to stick out her tongue to him. He copied her, putting his hands on his hips like a child, causing her to laugh.

"Fine, fine," she said, walking over to her wooden wardrobe. She swung the door open, pulling out a pair of dark blue jeans, a red shirt and a mauve jumper that would hide the shirt. She changed quickly, Gaignun still in the room, before putting on a pair of socks along with her trainers. "Happy?"

"Much," he smiled, kissing her firmly on her head, causing a curl to flatten momentarily.

Smiling widely so all her teeth were on show, she turned from him and reached underneath her bed, fishing out a black ball that was just as big as her head. Bouncing the ball to the ground she caught it whilst it was in mid air and took a hold of Gaignun's olive hand, dragging him out of the room. Giggling she shut the door behind them, Gaignun smiling as he felt the radiance of her hyperactivity emitting from her frail body. He knew instantly that they would never be a normal couple that would do things like read together, or something simple; once the thing was out of Faith he had a feeling they'd be playing hide and seek all the time and though he wasn't one to start games such as that, he couldn't help but find the prospect fun. Just as they were about to walk down the stairs, another door opened; the white headed chaos stepping out of the room. When he stopped Faith with a smile he smiled to himself; Gaignun immediately giving him his attention. He was wearing his typical bright coloured clothes that he had collected from the Elsa, which was still docked in Miltia much to Captain Mathew's dismay, who wanted to get his work over and done with but was obviously prevented from doing so as part of Gaignun's orders. Placing a hand on the doorframe, he nodded at Faith and Gaignun, asking where they were headed; obviously more then concerned for Faith's safety.

"Just outside," Faith replied, before pausing for a long moment. The smile faded from her face as she shuffled from one foot to another, eyeing chaos up and down. "Uhm…" she bit her lip with her pointed fang, before showing him the ball she was holding. "Do you want to come?" she asked. Despite being all adults, something just clicked within them, giving them all a slight childish behaviour to them; perhaps it was the break they were having from all the seriousness, or Faith's own cheerfulness but something caused them all to forget their troubles, turning their frowns into smiles. Chaos couldn't deny the slight shock he had from the offer Faith had given him, especially because he was almost positive she hated him (well, she had told him that more then enough times for it to stick into his mind firmly, but still that didn't shift him from protecting her). Closing the door behind himself, chaos gave her a gentle nod and smiled.

"I'd love to," he grinned, following them downstairs. He asked Gaignun how his work was going along with issues concerning the Foundation; the answers being ones that he liked, causing his hear to be stable under his chest. Things were working out slowly, one step at a time but they were getting closer to the end of what had been a lifelong journey, but the end would only be the beginning to something far new and better; for them all, especially for young Faith who would be able to have her life back (or have a life). He watched her bouncing up and down, chatting to Gaignun about this and that as they walked outside; the bitter air biting against his flesh through his thick clothes immediately. The door shut behind them as they walked down the back porch, Faith quickly running ahead with the ball, laughing as she did.

"Heads up!" she yelled suddenly, not in any direction as to who she was yelling at. The ball was thrown through the air, with her strong hand in the direction to Gaignun. Reaching up he grabbed it with ease, causing Faith to whine slightly under her breath, which was turning white in front of her face due to the cold. "No fair!" she whined, realising she didn't have a chance of winning catch against a U.R.T.V who could probably catch the ball with his eyes shut. Gaignun laughed as he threw the ball towards chaos, who too caught it with ease.

"Coming from the girl that was trying to catch me out," Gaignun laughed as the ball was thrown in her direction; chaos' throw directly towards her yet she panicked somehow, moving to left as the ball came to her.

She reached to grab it, catching it with the tips of her fingers; the rubber painful against her fragile flesh. Gasping, she leaned foreword, not wanting to let the ball go. As she did her legs became twisted preventing her from moving more to the right, meaning she struggled to grab the ball firmly. As she moved her left hand to wrap her fingers around it the ball disappeared from her touch; dropping to the ground and bouncing far from her reach. Moaning, she heard their laughter in her ears causing her to blush brightly. Stubbornly she walked to the edges of the woods, bending over to pick the ball up. When she lifted it and stood up she saw something in the corner of her eye causing her to frown as she looked at the woods properly; figuring she had seen a wild animal that had disappeared instantly. Shrugging the thought from her mind she turned back to the guys, wasting not a moment to throw the ball as hard as she could in Gaignun's direction. The black headed man hadn't noticed the ball flying towards him until it hit his shoulder, bouncing to the floor. Faith sniggered to herself as he shot her a playful glare, chaos smirking as Gaignun walked to grab the ball.

"That was uncalled for," he said in his oh-so-serious-I'll-rip-you-to-shreds-if-you-do-that-again kind of tone, though he was being nothing but playful, which caused Faith to laugh happily.

"You laughed at me," she countered, pointing her finger disappointedly at him. "Tut, tut, Mister Kukai."

"Tut, tut, Misses Kukai," he mimicked childishly, causing her to glare. In her heart she was fluttering from the word he had used to direct her; she was his other half, the woman that shared his name and that overjoyed the young woman. Gaignun picked up with ball and threw it into the air, catching is as it was pulled back down to the ground. Just as he was about to throw it, a familiar, even more childish laugh ran through their ears, causing them to turn their heads to the pathway that led to the front of the house. Stood there, like a light in the dark, drab outdoors, was Rubedo; who was more then amused to see Gaignun holding a ball in his hands and acting how he was with Faith.

"And you call _me_ immature!" he mocked like the older brother he was, laughing again as he walked over to Faiths side of the space, putting himself in the game without asking for permission but still, it wasn't like anyone was going to say no to him anyway. Faith grinned at her brother-in-law who was far older then her, yet shorter, which always caused a tickle in her heart. Gaignun frowned at Rubedo's appearance; almost feeling shame in his heart from acting out from his personality but a little break from being mature wasn't wrong, right? Especially if it made Faith happy. "I don't think I've _ever_ seen you play a game before!"

"There's a difference between being immature and having fun, Rubedo," Gaignun replied seriously as he threw the ball towards his older brother, hoping for him to miss the catch completely. But to his dismay, his aim had utterly messed up and the ball smacked Faith's arm, causing her to yell 'ow' almost as loud as her throat would let her. Their eyes widened as for a split second they wondered whether the creature in her would become frustrated from the pain Gaignun had given her, but instead she glared firmly at her love and stomped her foot on the grass.

"You _jerk_," she yelled; a hint of warmth in her voice that stopped their fears of the thing acting out at Gaignun. "Rubedo's all the way _over there_!" she continued, pointing to Rubedo who was just a few feet from her. The red head was holding a laugh inside of his lungs, Gaignun wincing slightly from causing her pain. He apologised, causing Faith to firmly shake her head. She lifted the ball and threw it to chaos. "You shouldn't be allowed to play; you're a danger, Kukai," she said, pointing her finger like she was scolding a small child. "Hmph, I'll be right back," she quickly said, storming up to the house. When the door shut behind her Rubedo raised his brows to Gaignun.

"Good going lover boy," he teased, rolling his eyes. "That's probably cost you fun in bed tonight!" he laughed from his own joke, knowing he was utterly winding up his little brother who's eyes widened.

"Rubedo!" he gasped, trying not to yell. "This is exactly what I mean when I call you immature. I was playing a game and you make comments like that as if you're five."

"Hey, you were the one who obviously wanted to smack my face off with a ball!" he yelled defensively, catching the ball they were talking about that chaos threw towards him; the toy that was obviously becoming a simple weapon between the two U.R.T.V's.

As they continued to argue, the pair failed to notice the wooden door re-opening again; Faith emerging from the house as quickly as possibly. Around her frail body she wore a bright yellow rain coat; the hood above her head. With playful eyes she looked at chaos and placed a finger over her lips to keep him quiet, causing him to just turn his head from her, pretending he hadn't even noticed her. Faith watched for a few moments as the brothers yelled at one another, throwing the ball harder then the other had done, hoping it would smack someone in the face. A grin like the Cheshire cat widened on her face as she pulled a lime and navy coloured gun from her pocket. With both of her hands she held the gun, pointing it to Gaignun's head. Even as she walked down the porch steps, Gaignun failed to notice her; only Rubedo had done and he said nothing after seeing chaos give him the same gesture Faith had given him.

"Bam, bam, you shot me down!" she suddenly said, grabbing Gaignun's attention immediately.

When he turned to her he had no time to react to the gun in her ivory hands before water was sprayed up to his face when she pulled the trigger, causing him to turn his head. Rubedo laughed loudly, chaos giving a small laugh as Gaignun pulled his blazer over his head, telling her to stop through his laughs. When he ran foreword, she chased after him, drenching his blazer with the water gun, chaos and Rubedo watching as they still threw the ball between them. Just as Gaignun took a turn to the pathway leading to the front of the house he noticed something against the wall, what looked like a green snake with a silver hood; the hose. With his eyes gleaming with joy, he dropped his blazer back onto his shoulders, letting his hands free and quickly grabbed the hose. Turning to Faith, she took her finger off the trigger, her eyes widening as she panicked.

"You wouldn't dare…" she growled, slowly taking a small step back. His lips pulled back into a grin as he twisted the hose; letting some water drip out of the nozzle. Dropping the water pistol to the ground, she let out a loud 'no' before turning and running deep into the woods, getting further away from the man that wanted to drench her. Just as she entered the woods, Gaignun had dropped the hose, grabbing the water gun instead and pursued her; determined to get her back. He ignored the ice cold feeling of the water against his skin and instead concentrated on getting her back. Turning her head she could see his outline following her, so she made a quick turn, determined to keep away from him.

As she turned, feeling the air quickly running through her lungs a voice echoed through her mind, causing her to almost freeze in her steps. _'You can be my Eve and I can be your Adam,'_ when the horrifyingly familiar voice spun through her mind, her legs slowed. Snapping her head from left to right she searched through the woods as best as she could, seeing the figure she had seen before somewhere further ahead of her. Eyes widening, she checked behind herself, not even being able to see the house or Gaignun.

'_Or hasn't it always been like that?'_ the second sentence caused raw panic to run through her heart; the white figure ahead of her far clearer to her vision, which proved the things she was experiencing weren't simple tricks her mind was playing on her. Taking a small step foreword, she felt the leaves crunching underneath her trainers; her heavy breath visible underneath her eyes. Her body began to shiver from the fear rather then the cold as she heard feet around her; the crunching of the leaves sounding like a predator stalking its pray.

"Albedo…" she whispered, feeling a tear well up in her eyes from disbelief. Her legs were as if they had suddenly gained a hundred pounds each; they were so hard for her to lift as she began to walk towards where she had come from, knowing that she was too horrified to even begin to run.

'_Now Albedo where are you?'_ the voice of Gaignun echoed through her mind, causing her to stop in her tracks, glancing from left to right.

'_Nigredo!'_ Albedo's voice replied, coming through as fresh as anything. The voices she heard were peculiar, like they were being heard within her mind rather then through her ears to her brain. Shaking uncontrollably, her eyes shot about the woods; trying to find whoever was creating these sounds.

'_Well hello then,'_ Gaignun's voice was as smooth as silk to her. How she prayed he would find her with the water pistol, even if she were to get utterly drenched at least she wouldn't have to deal with what she was alone and fearful. _'You sound like your doing well, unfortunately.'_

'_And you're grim as ever!'_ Albedo mocked; his voice causing her heart to skip a beat. _'What's wrong? Is that little doll not satisfying you enough…? Are you lonely little baby?'_ she couldn't help but grit her teeth from the words he used towards her love.

'_Oh I'm just doing a little information gathering,'_ Gaignun replied in her mind. Faith couldn't help but ponder to herself; was she hearing them sharing an actual conversation, or were they memories somehow being projected to her by Albedo if he was indeed somewhere deep in the woods, calling her Eve. _'Of course, it still isn't too late for us to come to terms…'_

'_Oh so its peace talks eh? Didn't McCartney once say that too? Ebony and ivory live together in perfect harmony!'_ Faith shuddered, remembering how she had said that line to Albedo once when she was living with him on his 'chessboard' as he called it. She made the reference to the chess pieces he would always go on about, the quote proving to be intriguing to him. His horrible laughter echoed through her mind, causing a tear to stream uncontrollably down the side of her face. _'But I know your true form…Executioner…'_

'_I shed that skin long ago,'_ Gaignun replied with a firm voice. Faith couldn't help but frown as she placed a hand on the trunk of a nearby tree. She had a memory of asking him a year ago whether he really was an executioner and instead he lied; he _lied_ right to her damn face! Her hand quivered as she remembered how he called Albedo the liar when he was the one doing it right through his teeth to her. He had told her _everything_ yet the one thing she _asked_ about, he plainly and blatantly _lied_.

'_Is that so?'_ Albedo questioned, Faith not caring for their words too much anymore as she was drenched in anger. She had never ever lied to him. _'Are you sure your not just hanging around Rubedo because your waiting for the chance to carry out your mission? What about Faith, hm? Would you ever execute her if needs be?'_ he gave off another laugh before the voices in her mind ceased, leaving her to stand there in silence. Those last words Albedo had purred to Gaignun frightened her, yes but not as much as the sheer anger she had from her lying Gaignun. He had _said_ that marriages aren't form on lies!

Whilst taking a step foreword she remembered the memory she had watched of Gaignun as a child, telling Dmitri that he wouldn't follow his orders anymore. Was that the reason for his creation as a U.R.T.V, to execute Rubedo if needs be? If he was denying his reason for his life perhaps that was why his father was emerging through his body, demanding to take over his mind and perhaps demanding to execute Rubedo. She hadn't realised the dangers Gaignun was to himself along with the others, just like she was a danger to everyone. Maybe, just maybe, Dmitri in him would execute her, like Albedo had mentioned.

'_Your husband isn't who he says he is, is he Eve?'_ Albedo's voice echoed through her mind. Biting her lip, she wondered whether she could talk to him and took her chances, parting her lips to speak as confidently as possible; the childish side of her personality replaced by her fieriness.

"You would know better then me," she told him, her brows furrowed. "Which is obvious. Where are you?" she questioned, looking from left to right in the woods, not wishing for him to sneak up on her. "Aren't you supposed to be _dead_?"

The maddening laughter echoed through her mind horribly, causing her to shiver hard._ 'Immortals like us do not die, poupee.'_

"Fuck you and that damn nickname!" she screamed furiously, causing a few birds to flee from their resting place as her anger ringed through the air. Her hands screwed up into fists, despising the nickname she had lived with for so many years. "Casse-toi vous damn salaud!" she yelled, her throat already becoming sore. "Take that French, why don't you!"

'_Tut, tut, I never knew you had such a foul mouth,_ he told her calmly; his voice causing the blood in her veins to boil over. _'Oh Faith, from our immortality we were created as angels to wipe out man; to return the world to its former glory. We are the protectors of this world, hence why none of us can die.'_

The figure she had seen before appeared like magic far from her; the figure grey rather then white. It was the figure of a body; the man that she knew to be Albedo. Fearfully, she took a step back, thankful that it seemed his was wearing some sort of mask that was preventing her from seeing his terrifying face. Glancing behind her shoulder she prayed Gaignun had heard her screaming and that they would find her soon, before Albedo had a chance to take her away. It seemed things were spiralling far, far, out of her control. Defensively, she put her right hand in the air, warning Albedo that she would use the powers granted to her if needs be. He made no movement but continued to talk in his usual, frightening manner.

'_Mankind is a parasite, and in a few hundred years man will be nothing but a distant nightmare. We can be the saviours,'_ he told her, causing her to shake her head.

"We're cursed," she told him quickly, her voice breaking.

'_We are ones that cannot enter heaven or hell,'_ he told her firmly.

"We've been abandoned by God and the Devil," she replied, determined that she would win in their discussion. Her voice was breaking as she felt the fear clouding over her like a fog.

'_We were created with ultimate powers, Faith and you plan to let them go?'_ he asked her.

"There's something in me," she told him quickly, placing her left hand over her beating heart. "I wasn't born with these powers."

'_Oh but you were,'_ he whispered through her mind, his figure taking a small step foreword. _'The thing inside you is just trying to overtake your body; that is simply it. Something that leeches within your mind cannot provide you with powers or immortality; it simply just sits there, learning how to work the levers to make you do its bidding.'_

Her eyes widened. So if they were to get it out she'd still be 'different'. "I was obviously a mistake God created then, Albedo."

'_Come with me, Faith,'_ he told her, holding out his hand despite being too far for her to even touch it with her own. _'Let me prove to you that you are not a mistake. Come with me to create a new world, where we shall be the better versions of Adam and Eve.'_

Faith firmly shook her head, taking a step back. "I belong here, with my family."

'_With the executioner?'_ he questioned mockingly. _'Fine, but the next time I return to you Faith I will not give you the option. Next time you will be joining me on the chessboard again.'_

Standing there in pure disbelief, she watched as his figure disappeared into nothingness; Albedo having finally left her. Sighing, she placed a hand on her forehead, taking long moments to calm herself down; her heart returning to its usual speed. After long minutes she could hear footsteps approaching her from behind, causing her to turn her head suddenly. Walking towards her was none other then Gaignun; the water gun not in his hands but his body still drenched from what she had done to him. His face was one of pure concern, but it was returned with a firm glare from Faith. Before he had a chance to ask where she had been, she put her hands into fists again and began to yell at him.

"You liar!" she yelled, feeling her throat become raw. "You're nothing but a foul mouthed liar, _Nigredo_!"

All the raven headed man could do was take half a step back; unreservedly stunned by her sudden anger. As usual, a hint of fear merged into his heart as he remembered the danger she was to him. The name she used almost stabbed him in the heart; confusion welling within him from why she had used it. Never had she called him Nigredo, nor did he really ask of her to.

"You blatantly told me marriages aren't formed on lies," she hissed, her knuckles turning a pale shade as they began to shake. "I told you _everything_ about me and when I asked you about whether you were an executioner you _lied_!"

"F-Faith, what are you talking about?" he stuttered, a part of him hoping he could get away with still lying to her. Inside he was asking himself how she knew of such a thing; what had brought it up? Last time he had seen her she was running and giggling with joy, but now she had just snapped entirely.

Lifting her finger, she held her breath using the deepest voice she could as she quoted what she had heard earlier. "I'm just doing a little information gathering. You know, it still isn't too late for us to come to terms," she said; getting a few words wrong here and there but as she continued she could see the pure horror in his emerald gems as he recalled the conversation he shared with Albedo not too long ago. "So its peace talks huh? Didn't McCartney say that? Ebony and Ivory live together in perfect harmony. But I know your true form," her voice came back to normal as she spoke the last word. "Executioner," there was a long pause between then as he collected his thoughts, unsure of what to reply to her with. "I asked you when we first met whether his words were true. You had more then a year to tell me what you were."

"Faith I…" he was cut off by her yelling again.

"Why did you lie to me?" she asked; her voice breaking as she finally showed the hurt she had from him. "Do you not trust me enough? Did you think I'd tell everybody?"

"No I just…" he sighed, putting a finger on his temple. "Where did you hear that conversation from?"

"No! No, no, no," she yelled, shaking her head. "You're not changing the subject. We're getting this over and done with _now_. What made you lie to me?"

"I'm not an executioner!" he yelled in denial, causing Faith to flinch slightly. She could see his eyes trembling with tears; his personality that he had tucked deep within his mind seeping out of the jar quickly. "I wasn't born to kill my brother, I wasn't born to kill anyone," he yelled more to himself then her. She could see the sparkles of his tears as they fell to the floor, causing her to feel guilty immediately. "But I was…" he finally whispered. "Rubedo and Albedo and even Citrine were there for reasons…I was the last one created just to destroy them if anything went wrong. I'm not immortal; I have nothing about me apart from being a backup plan in case things go wrong. That's all my life is destined to be. Technically, I'm nothing."

"Nigredo…" she whispered, feeling as if she was talking to the child within him; the hurt child that had been left out of everything. Sympathizing with him, she took some steps foreword, reaching up with her trembling hand to wipe the tears from his olive face. "To the world you may only be one person, but to one person you are the world. You _are my world_," she told him honestly, feeling so terrible for hurting his feelings so horribly. She hadn't meant to; she herself was hurt from his lies but she could understand what he was feeling; why he had lied. At times that was all she felt like, just nothing; a pointless creature walking the earth and causing innocent people harm. Hell she still felt like that, meaning she understood Gaignun better then anyone else in the world. Wrapping her arms around his damp neck, she went onto her tip toes to dig her face into the nape, kissing his skin gently with her warm lips. "I'm sorry…" she whispered into the hollow of his neck. Strong hands ran their way up her body, lifting her with ease above the ground. She responded gleefully, wrapping her legs around his waist; her arms tightening around his neck so that she defiantly wouldn't fall to the ground.

"I don't want to lose you…" he whispered into her hair, kissing her head gently. His voice had returned to its usual calamity; the deepness soothing to her ears. "I lied to you because I thought that you would hate me for what I am."

"Don't let that define you," she said, flicking his nose playfully. "Your father created you with the intention of using you as an executioner. Instead, he created a beautiful baby that grew into the most handsome prince charming in the whole of the galaxy," she laughed, kissing his nose. "Who has the most dreadful aim, but who has a mind of his own," she said, causing him to smile. Poking his head softly, she continued. "You are Gaignun Kukai; the man who's the chairman of the Kukai Foundation, who has a very peculiar family and who's not an executioner," she smiled. He smiled back at her and kissed her cheek.

"The family isn't that peculiar," he muttered playfully.

"Gaignun, you have an older brother who's not even five foot tall," she smirked. "Another old brother that's hell bent on doing anything he can that's utterly mad and a wife that's …well…a…y'know," she smirked, not wishing to use the word 'murderer'. "Frankly, you're like the glue that's attempting to-EW," she suddenly said, causing Gaignun to frown by her change of topic. "Ew, ew, ew my brother-in-law wants me to be his Eve," she gagged jokingly. "Ew, ew, ewy, ew."

"Albedo said that to you?" he asked, causing her to attempt to turn in his arms to where he had been. She pointed behind her when she realised her moving was restricted.

"He's back," she told him solemnly. "Don't tell anyone. You can't, but he's back that's how I know what you said," she explained. "He told me we could change the world or something silly like that."

"Is that why you were yelling?" he asked, frowning slightly from her words, trying not to be affected by the thought of Albedo being back.

"Oh yeah," she laughed. "He called me his 'poupee' again."

Gaignun let out a long sigh and leaned his head against hers; there was always one thing after another. "Let's go inside," he said, carrying away without her being able to do a thing about it causing a smile to grow on her little face.


	36. Family Noise

**.| Chapter Thirty-Six |.**

**Family Noise**

**:.| C o m m e n t s ::**

I've just been writing a Thorny Towers Asylum fic and I swear to goodness I've slipped Fred in here somewhere rather then Faith O.o I'm doing the comments half way through the story so if I have I'm ever so sorry! (comments are half way through the story cause I'll have no computer/laptop aalll tomorrow because of some silly doctors meeting I gotta go to :/ and I'll probably forget to do them after) so hmm…It's just a quick chapter to show the relationships between the new family members (which I'm assuming will include chaos xD I mean you can't include him in your family when he's been so helpful!) and hopefully Dmitri (BWAHAHARH ebilness :3) if I get round to that bit and figure out where to slide him in without Rubedo knowing. I haven't played Xenosaga III yet, well I've only played II and watched the Bonus Movie of Xenosaga I, because they didn't release Episode I or III in Europe which SUCKS majorly! And I'm really not tempted to check out Xenosaga III videos and whatnot because I don't really have the attention span to do that kinda thing XD I know Albedo goes inside of Rubedo when they're trying to take Dmitri out of Gaignun… (which kills Gaignun! T_T *cries like a waterfall*) and I know something happens between Yeshua (such a pretty name!) and Wilhelm (his name reminds me of someones name in xenosag, but im not sure who :/). I think O.o Uhm but yeah I don't really know the ins and outs so I'm – OH OH! I do know that Dmitri like nearly kills the entire Durandle but I'm not sure whether he's completely taken over Gaignun by then, but I don't know. I've kinda fudged up the storyline. I think I need to stick with fics for simple games like Psychonauts or ICO XD Xenosaga is killing me (we're under the sheets and your killing me in our house made of paper~ your words all oveeerr meee~~ ahem XD) anyway! Do enjoy!~ I'm quite surprised I've thrown out so many chapters in such a short amount of time XD

EDIT: I hate how Gaignun dies, it screws up ALL the happy family things so I have to squeeze them all in which makes it seem so silly T_T I wish they had met earlier :/ OHHH I should do that with Bitter Sweet Re-Take, don't cha think? :3 and holymoly BIG chapter Dx and I still WAANNTT to add stuff! :/

From where Gaignun sat, at the wooden table with his typical, see-through blue, laptop at his hands, he could hear all that was going on in the room next door; from the noise of the television (which was mostly the fierce growling of engines that belonged to cars, which was occasionally followed by a large crash) to Faith's little 'no, no, no's' that would be her struggling to control the car as she tried to make it turn a corner: those moments amused Gaignun ever so much when he was watching her, to Rubedo's yelling and Gabriel's big-headed scoffing. After the incident that had happened earlier in the day, Gaignun had led them all inside, but Rubedo still wanting to play _something_ insisted on using the video games console they owned, choosing out one of Gabriel's favourite games to play (who he, surprisingly, was actually getting along with if he forgot the abuse he had put his sister-in-law in). He chose to race against Faith and Gabriel; chaos not wanting to get involved in the game, who instead had sunk down in a chair with a book in his hands that seemed so tattered and old. It was titled 'Unlondon'; a book he remembered having left there when he left after Faith's transition to a Realian. His tranquil azure eyes had absorbed the words an unbelievable amount of times; the boy having shared the book with Faith at times, who enjoyed it just as much as he did. Surprisingly to Gaignun, chaos could easily block out their noises that to him was like thunder crashing about in the room, though he more then enjoyed hearing Faith getting so excited about being herself. Gaignun, on the other hand, was unable to concentrate on his work after settling down in the room and ended up moving into the dinning room to sit with Damion, who too enjoyed the little bit of quiet hovering around in the room. He knew it would be far quieter in Faiths room yet he felt weird being in their alone; like it wasn't right, so he avoided the room until she was there with him, sure that then he wouldn't be invading her privacy. Besides, it was nice to sit with Damion, who after speaking with him a number of times after their first meeting was an almost exact replica of himself. He was calm, collected and enjoyed solitude where he could read or carry on with work. Despite the fact they spoke little, most of their conversations revolving around Faith, they still seemed at peace; like they were looking in a mirror-kind-of-odd-peace. The only person Gaignun utterly refused to communicate with was Gabriel, who had no intentions with conversing with the U.R.T.V back. The last time they had _properly_ spoken was when he was yelling at Gaignun after learning his little sister was engaged to him, and even that wasn't them having a conversation; it was Gaignun getting yelled at with Faith yelling at Gabriel, meaning Gaignun couldn't get a word in edgeways.

"Stop crashing into me Faith!" came the loud bellow of irritated Gabriel, causing Gaignun to lift his head from his work, preparing himself in case something were to happen. Unlike his reaction, Damion was calmly sat there, reading the newspaper with his left hand wrapped around a warm mug of freshly made coffee: the mug a beautiful shiny white the floral patterns upon it. Gaignun had exactly the same beverage in an identical cup; the two similar looking men with the same tastes.

"I wouldn't be crashing into you…" she ground out through her teeth, obviously concentrating on the television as she argued with him. "If you knew where you were going. You're driving all over the track, doofus!"

"It's called blocking you!" he yelled back, causing Gaignun to sigh slightly as he realised he would never get any peace with them arguing as they did. Despite the arguing he had to admit he was grateful that neither of them had ripped one another to shreds just yet. "See, now you've over taken me!"

"Have they always been like this?" Gaignun asked Damion as Faith yelled 'It's called playing the game and _winning'_, which was then followed by Rubedo's laughter, who stated he was the one still winning, which Faith replied to but in her normal voice, meaning Gaignun only heard the muffling of words.

"They used to get on fine until Miss Faith sent Master Gabriel to the hospital," Damion replied, taking a sip of his coffee as he continued to read the flashing words of the newspaper; his eyes hovering along articles about Faith, the spontaneous killer as they called her; stating all the things she had done in her life, which caused a sickening feeling to grow in his stomach. It had been _their_ private life that was suddenly let out in the open; something no one had wished for. There wasn't _much_ information and to calm the public they had told them she had been captured, which was rather peculiar to Damion, but still lucky. They hadn't even given her name, obviously having to hide her identity due to her marriage with Gaignun.

"The hospital?" Gaignun repeated; his voice as monotone and tranquil as usual; obviously not shocked by the fact she had harmed her brother so badly. It seemed he was numb to the things that could shock him now.

"Mm," Damion nodded simply, before lifting his head to face Gaignun in politeness. Memories spiralled through his mind of when he had met the man for the first time, Faith having crashed into him when she was just young; never had he thought the pair of them would reunite yet alone create their own relationship with one another and quite possibly a family in the future. Like a father, he couldn't help but feel so proud of little Faith for having grown up, grabbing her own life, especially with such a charming man. Clearing his throat after the moment of reminiscence, he explained to Gaignun to incident that had occurred. "If I remember correctly, Gabriel was fifteen years old while Faith was eleven. He had begun teasing her about the most peculiar of things; I think it may have had something to do with her powers, but Gabriel took it too far, thus irritating Faith to the point she snapped at him; using her powers. Or rather, the 'thing' snapped at him…" he said, scolding himself as he put the blame onto Faith when he knew her mood swings were not her fault at all. "Since then they never had the same relationship. Gabriel grew stale as well."

"I thought Gabriel could …regenerate," Gaignun muttered, unsure of what word to use for the power he had that allowed him to heal his wound the previous year. Damion shook his head, taking another sip of the coffee, which Gaignun mimicked unconsciously; his drink slightly burning the tip of his tongue as the bitter flavour ran to the back of his throat.

"Not back then," Damion replied, switching the button on the holographic newspaper that caused all the words to disappear; leaving just a see-through blue sheet that looked like a thin piece of glass. "Gabriel only obtained that power a year before we met back up with Faith; if obtained is the right word to use."

"Discovered?" Gaignun questioned, forgetting about his work along with the yelling in the room next door. Damion nodded, thanking him for the word he offered, which was more like the better way to express it. Gaignun sighed inwardly, tapping the table with the tips of his fingers momentarily. "You mentioned yesterday Faith had…appeared in the home as a child?" he said with a questioning tone at the end of his sentence. He wasn't sure whether it was his part to delve into matters that were wholly to do with Faith, but still he wanted to know; he wanted to have some idea of what had happened to her, and though he should have been concerned about the story of Albedo she told a few hours ago, his mind wouldn't change its track when it came to helping her.

"Ah. Yes," he nodded; his words coming out like blocks as he began to think of when she was a child. "The room she has was ready when I was there, which was when Gabriel was three, which…Thinking about it is rather peculiar because when you look at the time frame, Faith wouldn't have been born."

"If there's four years difference," Gaignun began, frowning slightly. "Faith may not have even been conceived…"

"The room was laden with her items," he muttered, lowering his head as he struggled to contemplate what had been going on. These matters would have been far easier to think of if Faith hadn't of murdered her 'mother' and 'father' all those years ago. Instead they were left to find the answers for themselves. "Items with her name on them…"

"Like the music box?" Gaignun questioned, remembering its location on the desk he had been working at. Damion nodded solemnly. "Did you not find any of this strange?"

"I did," he nodded. "But I'm not in the right place to ask questions. I assumed they had a daughter who was either ill or have died tragically, which would have been wrong of me to bring up. When I met Faith they explained to me that she was their daughter and I…" he put a hand on his forehead, feeling his heart breaking into a thousand pieces as he realised his mistakes he had made. "I hadn't even the brain to think something was weird due to the fact Emilia hadn't been pregnant…" the hand on his forehead scrunched into a fist as he sigh hard, Gaignun watching him silently. "I should have known something was strange…"

"You did what you could," Gaignun told him as gently as he could. "You protected her and from what I remember at the Foundation, you seemed like an excellent father figure to her."

"You mistook me for her father," Damion said, laughing slightly which caused Gaignun to smirk.

"Yes I do remember now," he said, watching as Damion's hand slowly re-opened as the anger drifted from his veins. "She is human, Damion; that we know for sure."

"Do you think she is like yourself?" Damion asked, leaning foreword slightly as if he knew a great secret. Gaignun frowned slightly, wondering what he meant like that. Seeing Gaignun's almost bewildered expression, Damion spoke. "A U.R.T.V," when Gaignun's face became even more confused Damion shook his head. "Gabriel told me he learnt what U.R.T.V's were. He told me you were one last year and I'm assuming the redhead with you isn't the child he looks like he is, is he?" Gaignun shook his head a no.

"We can talk to her through mental communication," Gaignun began to explain, putting the palms of his hands on the table. As he did he heard a smash of glass in the room next door, which was swiftly followed by a curse of Gabriel's lips. Neither of the men sat at the table paid attention to him. "I think that's because we're connected to her in some sense, if that's possible. She's most defiantly not one of us, due to I'm the last one created. I'm not sure what she is but for now I'm concentrating on helping her. Whether she's a creation of the Government to destroy the entire planet I do not care; I care only for her happiness."

"God bless you, Master Gaignun," Damion said, smiling widely at him; not knowing someone apart from Yeshua to have been so kind to dear Faith. Just as they were going to continue their conversation, the door to the dining room was abruptly opened; the noise of the engines overcoming the space before the door shut again, blocking out the noise. Turning his head Gaignun saw Faith walking behind him, clutching a fabric that looked like a crimson handkerchief to her arm, but it didn't seem to be helping; the blood making its way all down to the tips of her fingers to drop to the floor. She gave no attention to the men, heading for the hallway where the stairs were.

"Stupid bombbarian bastard. I'd run him over with that car the salaud…" she grumbled, causing Gaignun to raise a brow as she opened the door, leaving them again. For long moments Damion and Gaignun stared at one another, shocked at the harm Gabriel had powered on Faith without there being any drama; not even Rubedo had yelled at him for it. And…had she just said bombbarian rather then barbarian (which was the most peculiar thing to call her brother) and…did she just call him a _salad?_ He knew she _hated_ the leafy green food, but he hadn't ever thought she would use it as a curse. Thinking about it, wasn't that the word she had used while yelling at Albedo earlier? Gaignun was more then confused! He knew she liked taking a spin on her English, but he didn't know she would resort to utter nonsense, especially while trying to curse someone; that was quite un-Faith.

"Should we…?" Gaignun asked, lowering his brow into a perplexed expression. He placed a hand on the top of his chair, ready to hop up to his feet.

"I think we should," Damion said, causing them to both stand at the same time. "I'll go…" Damion muttered, walking to the door to the living room with the same expression as Gaignun. Bewilderment spun between both of the men, Gaignun following Faith to where she had disappeared to. As he did, Damion opened the living room door, stepping inside as he noticed everyone was just carrying on like normal; the two guys leaning foreword on the sofa to the game, while chaos was still stuck in his book. Clearing his throat, Damion stepped inside; the door shutting firmly behind him.

"What in the world just happened to Faith?" he questioned, grabbing chaos' attention first who lifted his head at the mention of her name. Raising his white brows he glanced to the sofa, noticing she wasn't there and instead that was just the broken glass upon the floor. What had he missed while being so engrossed in the imaginative story between his fingers?

"I was punishing the thing inside of her," Gabriel said, still playing the game with the black controller firmly in his hands. Rubedo took a moment to glance around at the people in the room, not even noticing how Faith had left, just like chaos. "Didn't even hurt her."

"I beg to differ, Master Gabriel," Damion said, folding his arms firmly as chaos sat up, unsure of what to do. He was mentally slapping himself firmly, disappointed with how he hadn't noticed the fact Faith had been harmed, when he had stayed to make sure things would run smoothly between the two of them. Sure he had heard them yell, along with the smash of the glass but she hadn't seemed _that_ irritated; their loudness certainly hadn't gotten as bad as it normally did before they fought. Even when he attacked her (which chaos wanted to know about – he didn't even know how hurt she was) there was nothing from her little lips. He heard the door go, assuming someone went to get a dustpan for the glass. "She's bleeding heavily, which is normally a sign that pain has been involved _somewhere_."

"Well she did-" he cried out suddenly, feeling a sharp pain of his own run up his arm to his shoulder blade; the smaller man in the room slamming his controller firmly in Gabriel's arm.

"I already got rid of a bastard that hurt her," Rubedo growled out threateningly. "Don't make me get rid of you."

"Oh, but we're family," Gabriel moaned sarcastically, quoting what Faith usually said. "Stupid bitch…" he hissed, carrying on with the game as Damion sighed at the doorframe.

"We _are_ a family, Gabriel," Damion said almost harshly; for the first time not saying Gabriel's name with Master starting it. "All of us. Me, you, Jr, Yeshua, Gaignun and Faith. We're the only family we have – before Faith joined us altogether there was hardly anything. Now be grateful to her; be kind to your family because that's all you ever get in life."

* * *

"That's what I said; bombbarian," Faith laughed, watching as Gaignun tended to her cut in the bathroom where Gabriel had stuck the glass deep within her flesh, just about missing a few veins. Gaignun was wincing, still wondering what she had meant by her word, as he tried as gently as possible to pull the glass out of her. It had hurt, yeah, but she didn't want to cry out as usual when Gabriel harmed her; she wanted to stay as silent as possible, not providing him with the joy that he got when she screamed. She hadn't even remembered what happened for her to get that cut; she wasn't even the one to smash the glass on the ground; Gabriel did it! All she had done was laugh slightly at his clumsiness and then the next thing she knew was that pain was shooting up her arm.

"Do you mean barbarian?" he asked her, tugging sharply at her arm accidentally; not meaning to pull so hard. Crying out, she cried as her body convulsed in sheer agony, causing her to slip from the edge of the bathtub. As she did, Gaignun panicked, moving back slightly to catch her in his arms; the tips of his fingers pulling the glass sharply from her arm from both of their movements. Though he had taken the thing from her flesh, he had caused the slash to become even worse; the blood gushing onto his white shirt as he held her where she was; her knees atop of his thighs; his own knees on the ground. Moaning, she tucked her face into his neck, tears streaming down her face as she felt the blood running away from her; not that she needed it but still her body reacted like a 'normal' one causing her to feel dizzy and faint, as well as the severe pain. He apologised over and over again, reaching for his blazer to wrap around her arm to stop the bleeding. Gently, he moved her back so that he could see her arm, praying that he hadn't cut a vein in the process.

"Faith I'm going to have to-" he muttered sorrowfully, cut off by her before he had a chance to finish her sentence.

"No, don't!" she begged as he stood up, leaving her in a bloody pile in the middle of the white bathroom. "Please, please the bleeding will stop."

"It'll stop when there's no more left," Gaignun mumbled, opening the cabinet underneath the sink. Slowly he pulled out a small device; Nano Technology. He had seen it the previous day when he was looked for a new toothbrush, which was a little bit shocking. He knew the family was based on old traditions, not really relying on technology especially for wounds, which was where he assumed Faith's fear had come from. Never had she wanted Nano Technology; always she insisted on the typical bandages and stitches, which was a rare thing to do then but still people abided by her but now Gaignun had no choice. They had no stitches or bandages, nor could they go to a Doctor as almost everyone knew who she was. "Faith, you need some blood within you. It won't hurt I swear."

When he turned it on and reached down towards her she thrashed like a feral animal, swinging her arms about to prevent him from using the machine on him. Growling, he firmly wrapped a hand around her wrist, pulling her arm above her head with such force she was frozen in place, opening her eyes to meet with his emerald gems that she knew would be utterly furious. But instead her eyes met with blue ones; sharp blue gems that were filled with livid rage. Holding her breath, she eyed his father, her father-in-law, with panicked gems. As she parted her lips to scream out, his hand firmly pushed against her mouth, preventing her from talking. The Nano Technology was still in his hand that was preventing her from speaking; the cold metal touching her lips. A fear-struck shiver ran through her body, like her soul was trying to escape her flesh and the consequences that were about to follow her from her stubborn behaviour. Regret brewed in her veins, wishing she could have taken back time to obey Gaignun so his father wouldn't have come through.

"If it were possible, I'd leave you bleeding to the ground," he growled in her ear, moving his hand from her mouth; knowing that she wouldn't scream out for help. The voice that he spoke with was nothing like Gaignuns and she could just about see blonde roots appearing in his raven locks. The Nano Technology began to glow a vivid green; Dmitri allowing it to scan over her arm that he wasn't holding onto. A tingling sensation ran up her arm, causing her to wince as the wound began to heal. Pain disappeared entirely; leaving nothing there on her flesh, which was utterly bizarre. This was not how the body was supposed to repair; to her the cells shouldn't have been forced to merge together so quickly; it was wrong; not natural but there was nothing she could do about it then. She would far rather not irritate Dmitri, who was one of the two people she was _truthfully_ afraid of killing her. When he had finished healing her, he threw the piece of metal to the other side of the room. As the metal smacked against the hard tiled ground, it slid across; screeching like an injured cat, which caused her to wince as she feared someone (chaos supposedly) would come see what the noise was, but hopefully the television was loud enough to cover it up from downstairs. "But I can't really do that can I? You intriguing little thing, you," he purred, leaning closer to her as he snatched her once injured arm. Like the other, he held it above her head; her back and tops of her arms powerfully pressed against the bathtub, preventing her from any escape. Faith was too afraid to cry out, nor did she want to; knowing Gaignun wished not to share his secret with anyone apart from her. "Not going to talk to me, Faith?" he questioned as she pursed her lips. Smirking to himself he kissed the side of her face, between her cheek and chin, causing a squirm to run through her little body. She couldn't talk; she couldn't. She had to wait for him to grow bored of her, which would hopefully make Gaignun return back to his body. "Humph," he gave her a bored look before letting go of her hands. Slowly, they fell back to her sides; her right arm aching slightly from being held for so long. "Maybe I should go speak to your family…I hear my other son is downstairs too…"

"W-Wait!" she gasped, grabbing his hand with hers. The touch caused her to wipe blood on Gaignun's flesh but neither of them noticed. Her eyes were wide in desperation; her fingers shaking uncontrollably around his hand. She tightened her grip like a metal claw.

"I'm bored of you, child," he uttered, making her frown. "No wonder you and Nigredo get along so finely; you're both just plain. Your both just dolls that higher beings can use for our own doing," he reached foreword to whisper deeply in her ear. "You're both nothing."

"Don't let him win, Gaignun," she replied in a light whisper. "Don't let yourself fade away. Wake up. Please wake up."

Dmitri laughed happily; his laughter reminding her much of Albedo's. "Do you honestly think words can save you now, Faith?"

"Perhaps not," she replied pulling back so she could look Dmitri in the eyes; her neck against the rim of the bathtub; the plastic so chilly she shivered. "But _I_ don't care about being saved. I care more about your son being saved. Be the bigger man, Dmitri and leave us alone."

"Leave you alone?" he mocked, laughing as he did. "To play happy families? Oh dear; your wish for a normal family mounts up to nothing compared to the plans I have. If I have to sacrifice my sons and my daughter-in-laws happiness then I shall."

Glaring as darkly as possible, Faith growled in his ear angrily. "You're a piece of trash."

"How many men and women have you murdered in your life, Faith?" he questioned cruelly, causing her to freeze; the fingers around his hand loosening. "Look at yourself before you name other people. I'm an angel compared to you."

"Six hundred and sixty-nine _children_ you killed," she growled, not letting her back down. She wouldn't be beaten up emotionally; not by anyone. Not anymore. She had made errors and she had paid for them but she hadn't _asked_ or had the _choice_ to make those mistakes. She hadn't been asked to be born with what she had been nor did she ask for the creature to infect her body and like _hell_ anyone was putting it down to be her fault anymore. "Six hundred and sixty-nine children you prevented a fucking life. Two of those children who walk these days are more then emotionally damaged; one of them turning utterly mad to the point he's going to destroy himself. The other you use as a doll and the third is unsuspectingly waiting for his 'execution', I suppose. _How_ can you deem yourself an _angel_?"

"I created a new type of human," he smirked with pride dancing in his voice. "I'd rather be called a God."

Lifting her hand, she punched the side of Gaignun's face uncontrollably; the anger having welled up so much in her heart her arm had taken its own control. From the force she had used with her fist, Dmitri fell backwards to the ground, his hands (or more like Gaignun's) slapping against the tiled wall to prevent him hitting his head against the floor. Somehow he had bitten his lip while she punched him, causing blood to run quickly down to his chin; dropping to the white ground. Shaking from the mixed feelings of anger and shock, she shook her fist; feeling her bones becoming painfully stiff. She hadn't really punched anyone before and though she knew it would hurt Gaignun later on in the day she was just so glad she hadn't used her powers. And then it occurred to her; she had just punched Gaignun square in the jaw! No wait, it was Dmitri…but it was Gaignun's face. Softening her face, she heard the slight groans of the man on the ground; his eyes firmly shut as an olive hand reached up to rub his painful jaw. Unable to see the roots of the hair from where she stood, Faith assumed she was still with Dmitri; fear sinking in as she wondered what he would do to her. He was _disgusting_ there was _no_ doubt about it. The foulest human she had ever met with. A … God…? Was he honestly _mental_? They were _his_ own children he had basically killed; destroyed physically and mentally and he was almost proud of that. Oh how she wanted to _kill_ him! No, she'd make him suffer for what he had done; suffer for his actions against innocent humans.

"You punch like Rubedo…" the o-so familiar voice ground out through the pain; his jaw so stiff it more then ached to move. Faith's eyes widened as she gasped, standing to her feet immediately as she watched Gaignun sit up; a bruise having already appeared on his face just underneath his finger tips. "And he really … really packs a punch…" he added, seeing Faith's legs quivering as she brought her hands to her face; standing there and unsure of what to do. Assuredly he smiled up at her, using the back of his hand, as he did so, to wipe the blood from his skin. He knew what had happened, to some extent; his father having overtaken his mind while he tried to get Faith to listen to him about the Nano Technology (which he wasn't actually mad about, more concerned). Looking across the bathroom helplessly, Faith's eyes finally set upon the Nano Technology near the door. Slowly, she walked over to the foreign piece of medicine and bent over, lifting it with her bloody fingers that trembled around it like it were about to explode.

"Will this work on your face?" she asked gently, trying to stop her voice shaking. Typical Dmitri; running away from pain; running away when things got bad between them. He was pathetic; a pathetic wimp, which was unfair to Gaignun. She hated herself for having to cause him pain.

"You don't have to," he said, rubbing his tender face gently. She hadn't realised her strength before, having only relied on her eyes to harm people. "I never knew you were that strong. You can pull people away with strength but never had I known your punches could be like this."

Shuffling from one foot to another awkwardly, Faith only just nodded, looking down at the monster with fangs in her hand as if it were about to bite her arm off. "What happened?" Gaignun softly asked, grabbing her attention from the Nano Technology. She noticed how his lip hadn't yet to stop bleeding; his shirt blotched with her blood from her arm (which weirdly didn't have mark – the atrocious miracles of new technology; it was ghastly).

"Dmitri being a jerk…" she told him, which made his brows rise as he realised she wouldn't venture into anymore detail. "I'd kill him if I could…" she hissed, before realising her words; if she did that she would destroy _Gaignun's_ body and – eek – he probably wasn't thinking well to that! Dropping down onto the ground, she moved towards him, wasting no time to wrap her arms firmly around his body, apologising over and over again for what she had said, along with slugging him.

* * *

Hovering curiously behind her, Gaignun was watching the words appear on the screen; the lights illuminating the small bedroom. It was late at night, perhaps nearing midnight, and everyone else had gone to bed, including Rubedo who was staying with chaos in the guest room, which at one point was counted as chaos' quarters. The air in the bedroom was boiling hot, despite the winter's air on the other side of the wall, which caused Faith to dress simply in a pair of female boxers along with her t-shirt with a picture of a penguin upon it. Much to Faith's joy (not that she'd let him know it, though she knew Gaignun was joyful for seeing her legs on show, which caused her to stick her tongue out at him childishly when he saw he change) Gaignun simply wore his own boxers, with pictures of ducks (she picked them!) and a black, silk nightgown which he would shed from his skin later. Questioning what Faith was doing, he got the most peculiar of replies; the little red head telling him she was finding out about his name; his number and his meaning. Frowning, he couldn't help but wonder whether Dmitri had said anything to her when he seeped through his flesh uncontrollably that had caused a switch to turn on in Faith. Sitting at the window seat, he watched her face begin to focus in a way he hadn't seen it before; she was ever so serious, parting her lips as she began to speak with what sounded like a monotone voice; both of which were mirrored images of what he was like most of the time, yet it was peculiar for her to act so serious. "Right at the beginning, you meet the dragon; the chthonic …" she paused slightly. "Chthonic spirit…isn't that relating to the Underworld?" she asked him, though not turning her face as she stared at the curious words. She couldn't help but wonder why Greek Mythology was included in with what was an Alchemic piece of information, but when she continued reading aloud she realised what it was talking about, which prevented Gaignun from replying to her question (though he didn't know the answer at all) "The devil or," she paused, emphasizing the or she had spoken. "As the Alchemists call it; the blackness. The Nigredo. And this…" the face of concentration dwelled from her face as she looked sorrowfully at the screen, not wishing to finish her sentence. "And this encounter produces _suffering_," pausing she continued to read with her eyes, Gaignun blinking a little quickly, unsure of what to say. "Nigredo signifies the difficulties that man has to encounter through his journey to the Underworld. The black crow is the symbol of Nigredo. But that's in Greek Mythology I'm assuming. Here it says Nigredo in Alchemy is the symbol of decapitation or the ravens head and these symbols refer to the dying of the common man; the dying of his inner chaos…and doubt because he has been unable to find truth in himself…"

"Faith," Gaignun began quietly, sighing as he did. "Don't you think you're looking _too much_ into what my father named me? For all we know it could have just been a nickname."

"What, he called you _all Albedo, Rubedo and Nigredo_ by chance?" she questioned, tilting her head towards him. She could hear the owls in the background cooing for their attention from the darkness of the cold outside. In the corner of his vision Gaignun could see the creatures she had heard swooping past the windows into the starry black sky. Simple life was what he actually liked. The birds in the air; the lack of technology, though he found it difficult at the beginning and still sort-of did being the most technological thing they had in the house was the laptop, and that belonged to Gaignun or Faith technically as she was the one who used it the most.

"They symbolize colours don't they?" Gaignun questioned back. "It's a more exotic name then calling us simply red, white and black."

"Don't you think it's strange that they're red and black headed?" Faith asked, turning back to the laptop to get more information. "They're not natural hair colours."

"People would state your hair isn't natural," Gaignun told her. "Yet it is."

"Because I'm a fucked up human being…" she muttered quietly to herself; Gaignun's sensitive hearing able to collect her words.

"And Rubedo and Albedo are too?" he questioned, causing her to glare firmly, yet she didn't shoot the glare to him, rather kept it to the laptop screen.

"No comments about Albedo," Faith muttered. "But no, Rubedo isn't."

"Then your not," he told her sternly. "Come on, let's go to bed; it's getting late."

"I don't feel like sleeping…" she said, sighing hard as her face softened with dismay. Sorrowfully, Gaignun lowered his eyes, letting a moment or two pass them by.

"You have to pretend those nightmares aren't there, Fay," he told her as compassionately as possible. For over six months she had been having severe nightmares; even from just a nap a nightmare would shoot through her mind as quickly and perhaps as deadly, as a bullet. On a few occasions she had awoken, telling him there was someone in the house, as she heard things. Slowly she began to admit to him voices had woken her up; some of the times she woke in a daze thinking Gaignun were talking to her, but he wasn't. Not only was it horrifying for her, but sleeping was becoming a hassle; waking up, falling asleep, waking up and perhaps waking Gaignun and attempting for them both to fall asleep again. He knew she suffered nightmares regularly, but not as strong as they were then. "If you carry on thinking of them then they won't leave."

"Gaignun, I love you," she said, putting her head on her hand as she sighed deeply, closing her eyes. "I love you more then anyone else in the world and I understand how utterly lucky I am to be your wife but please, _please_ stop changing the subject. I'm begging you."

"My apologies…" he whispered, lowering his head. "I only wished for you not to worry about these matters. As you said earlier, I am Gaignun Kukai; not Nigredo."

"Yes," she nodded, lifting her heavy head to look back at the screen. "But if we can find out the reason for Dmitri creating you we can be one step ahead of him every time. It might be meaningless but if we can get any information it'll be helpful."

All Gaignun could do was nod, wishing on the inside she would be concerned more for herself them him. Whatever was happening he would fix it, as long as she was 'fixed' as well. To him, his own health didn't matter. Nothing apart from Faith mattered. "What if you're experiencing the Nigredo?" she asked suddenly, breaking his thoughts.

"Pardon?" he questioned, not understanding what she was getting at. How could _he_ be experiencing it when he was called Nigredo?

"Maybe you're not the one who starts off the Nigredo," she said, scrolling down the screen. "Nigredo signifies the difficulties man has to experience…" she repeated, tying her hair back in a tight bobble as she did.

"Through his journeys to the Underworld," Gaignun continued part of the line she hadn't wished to have said. Sighing, he was unsure of how to think or even how to feel from the situation they were immersed in. He wanted to forget everything about his childhood and though she was brining it up which saddened him, he knew it was all for good reasons. He just wanted to drop it; to forget about everything; his name, his 'meaning' and those numbers imprinted on the palm of his hand that he used to hold hers; to caress her skin. His only meaning in life was to have a family with her; a meaning he never knew existed until that day they met in the hospital. With a loud groan, Faith put her hands on her forehead, shaking her head uncontrollably as she tapped her feet on the floor, causing Gaignun to frown. She repeated 'normal, normal, normal' over and over again; her voice becoming panicky as if she were about to have a heart attack. Her breathing had sped up to a shocking rate, causing Gaignun to stand quickly to her side, pulling her hands from her face. Her eyes were shut tightly as she trembled; her heart pounding so fast he could feel it through his touch; feel the horror sweep throughout her.

"Faith calm down," he whispered as tears began to ran down her cheeks. He hushed her gently, kissing her head to try and settle her. "What's wrong? Fay, what is it?" he asked, knowing his father must have said something to her. Suddenly she began to weep hard, stating that she wasn't normal; that she couldn't be perfect for him, causing him to frown.

"I ruined everything!" she cried; Gaignun loosening one of her hands so he could wipe the tears from her face that were running like her eyes were faucets. "I can't be perfect for you while everything's screwing up! I can't make everything right; I can't make things better or normal and I ruined everything and I'll carry on ruining it all!"

"Fay, Fay," he soothed, kissing her face with his torn lips. "Stop, stop, please; you've done nothing wrong. We'll fix this, we will I promise and then we'll go back home and it'll just be us again."

Pulling her down from the chair, he carried her in his arms as she slowly began to stop crying, allowing herself to be cuddled by Gaignun. Slowly, soothingly, he brought her to the bed, bending over to slide the sheets down. When he placed her on the soft fabrics, he brushed down her bangs, moving to turn off the laptop so they were engulfed in a faded darkness; their only light being the moonlight that seeped through the window in silver strands. Shedding his robe from his skin, she could see his silhouette against the window; his strong, muscular body that could carry her with ease. Moving in the bed with her, he brought her to him, wrapping his arms firmly around her small body, feeling the bones of her fragile figure press up against him. A curious face overcame Gaignun as he felt something weird against him. He could feel the usual bones of her arms around his back, feel her bony spine against the tips of his fingers along with the feeling of her fat-less bare legs against his own, firm ones but what he felt against his chest was most unusual. Underneath her breasts and ribs he could feel her stomach, firm against him, which was so strange. Usually she had a concave stomach (even though she did eat enough), but since when had she gained weight there and no where else? Slowly, with his heart beginning to pump faster, he pushed her on to her back as tenderly as possible; his hand smoothing over her shirt. Blushing, she eyed him with careful gems; feeling her hair fall along the fluffy, feather made, pillow under her head. With his left hand caressing her right arm, he began to kiss his way down her body, moving from the base of her neck to between her breasts, to finally her stomach where he lifted the fabric with his right hand, allowing it to bunch up around her chest. Unknown to him, Faith's eyes widened though he could feel her emotions change from the nervous joy to slight fear, as if she were a child about to get into trouble. Gently, he kissed her stomach, feeling the firm round shape of it with the tips of his right fingers. To soothe her emotionally, he continued to caress her arm, hoping her heart would not settle.

"How many have you missed, Fay?" he asked her delicately, his heart fluttering slightly, though he tried to keep his emotions in tact as usual but for some reason it was harder to at that moment in time. Underneath him, Faith froze, feeling trapped by his body wrapped around her.

"W-What…?" she asked, forcing a slight laughter to escape her throat as if she was naïve to his question, though she knew resolutely what he was talking about.

"Periods," he answered seriously, glancing up at her frightened gems. _'Don't be scared…'_ he mentally told her; his dancing eyes causing her to smile slightly as she tried her best to get hear heart to settle beneath her rips. Perhaps, just perhaps, the thing she was trying to avoid wasn't as bad as she thought it to be.

"Almost three…" she whispered, tensing when silence overcame them. Gaignun's eyes widened as he looked down at her stomach; his lips parting as they curled inwards.

"Three…?" he repeated with disbelief; wanting to make sure he had heard her right. He pushed himself up onto his knees, the duvet above him shrouding them both into their own little world. Faith breathlessly nodded, feeling her heart pound in such a way she liked. A wide smile grew on Gaignun's face as he let out a small breath; a smile he gave her but a few times; once when they had kissed for the first time and the second when they were getting married. It was the most joyful smile he could ever give and a smile he needed to show more often. Moving up to her face he let go of her stomach and arm, placing one hand on either side of her cheeks. She could feel his hands trembling as he looked down into her eyes; the lights in his own shaking from the water they were collecting. "Definitely three…?"

"Definitely," she promised, nodding her head as best as she could, widening her mouth into a breathless smile.

"Why didn't you say anything?" he questioned with an airy voice; his heart so joyful she could feel it.

"I was scared," she said, laughing slightly. "I thought it was one of those problems where you ignored it, it'd go away," her words caused him to laugh as he shook his head, calling her a 'silly little thing'. He asked her whether she had taken a test, which she replied with no. "I've got a tummy and really bad cravings and no period so I'm assuming there's no point in a test," she said, laughing as he did. Admirably he ran his fingers across her face.

"This is fantastic," he told her, kissing her nose and forehead firmly. "Oh my goodness, Faith, your pregnant," he whispered as if it only just sunk in. Pulling her to him, he cuddled her happily, refusing to ever let her go. She wrapped her arms around him, sinking her hands deep into his raven locks. "Everything's going to be okay," he promised. "By the end of the week we'll be back at the Foundation with evidence that what happened wasn't your fault."

"I know," she smiled, knowing full well no one would accuse her of the previous actions if she could prove there was a Demon inside of her, and even if Gaignun just simply explained to Helmer he felt something inside of Faith he wouldn't have told him otherwise. Thing's were going to be okay; Faith wouldn't be locked away for it, or sent down to murder, and like he said; they'd be home in no time and then … There'd be a little baby, which frightened her more then anything else had done in her life. "Gaignun?" she asked gently.

"Yes?" he replied; his voice unlike how it normally was. Instead it was drenched in elation.

"You're going to be a daddy," she smirked, kissing his cheek, which caused him to laugh. "Is Rubedo going to be his Uncle or brother?" she asked, titling her head to the side curiously.

"We'll let Rubedo decide," he smiled, kissing her forehead gently. "You're a beautiful, beautiful woman…" he whispered, kissing her forehead again. "I love you so, so much."

"I love you too."

**Comments Number Two:** okay, stuff it, I'll make things go fast XD simple because they has to 8D I'm thinking about it too, that they've known each other for about a year (just at the start of Xenosaga 2-ish) so I'm thinking Xenosaga two would take quite awhile to get through (if there's an official timeline do tell me XD) so they could still be in that yearly gap between II and III and I'm assuming it doesn't take a few days for Gaignun to 'disappear' should we say, so hopefully there's a little more time between the couple before things get worse XD Oh things will get more exciting nooww~ its dive time in the next chapter whoop whoop 8D thankkss for reading =3 and omg I've never wrote a chapter this long before! If you paid attention thank you soo soo soo soo sooo much! Oh and I know its a possibly really unrealistic way of finding out your wife's pregnant but I thought it'd be fun xD Plus I think Faith (bless her) would be too worried to tell Gaignun xDD anywho, do enjoy! xxxx


	37. You Are My Sinner: My Wife and Other

_When I'm at the pearly gates, this'll be on my videotape; this is one for the good days, and I have it all here in red, blue, green. In red, blue, green. You are my centre when I spin away, out of control on videotape. This is my way of saying goodbye; cause I can't do it face to face, I'm talking to you before._

_No matter what happens now you shouldn't be afraid,_

_Because I know today has been the most perfect day I've ever seen._

_[Radiohead-Videotape]__ this song reminds me of Faith/Gaignun. I don't know whether it's any relevance with the story so far or this chapter, but I figured I'd start with these lyrics this time XD I normally add lyrics afterwards that go with the chapters theme but yeah. If you haven't heard the song, listen to it!_

_Chapter Thirty-Seven_

_You Are My Sinner; My Wife and Other_

Outside the house, the sky grumbled from rim to rim, rocking the ground of Second Miltia underfoot. The rain pelted from the dark clouds hard against the trees that creaked and shuddered restlessly; branches moving in the gusting wind unsteadily. In the isolated kitchen, Faith listened to the noise of the raging, angered storm outside; thinking of how such a thing was an upcoming sign perhaps. Her body shivered uncontrollably in the cold kitchen, though she could hear the pipes in the home creaking as heated water flowed through them. She despised with all her might being the first person up in the old home, knowing how cold it would be until the heating was turned on, especially on a cold, stormy day such as that one. At the small, mostly unused dining table, she wrapped her hands around the boiling hot pink mug; the beverage inside the porcelain item was hot chocolate, one of her favourite drinks, which Gaignun had prepared for her, along with peanut butter and jam on toast, though that plate was on the other side of the table; Faith's stomach feeling too unsettled to have anything else within it but the drink. In the dim light of seven in the morning, a blanket of isolation had overcome her and if it weren't for the angered weather outside she would have felt as if she were still in a cloud of sleeping, rather then an awoken world that didn't feel that awake. Gaignun had scooted off to use the bathroom while everyone rested in their warm beds, oblivious to the storm raging that was so foreboding to little pregnant Faith. She wrapped her little ankles around the wooden legs of the chair, feeling her bones push almost painfully against it yet she didn't care. For what had felt like hours, Faith had stared at the plate of food in the corner of her eye, wondering whether she should dare to take a bit or not. She had been sick, earlier in the morning, which was the reason for her and Gaignun to be awake; neither of them could rest again with the loud storm nor could Faith settle under the sheets with her body trembling so. Gaignun had told her, whilst preparing her toast that she would need to eat and the reasons why she had been told that made her skin crawl. They were horribly frightening reasons that terrified the life out of her! And those thoughts, those reactions to something that was supposed to be amazing made Faith hate herself.

Was she rejecting a baby that hadn't properly grown yet? She thought herself of the lowest of the low; the most disgusting person in the world but the entire concept was bewilderingly frightening to her. Though all she did was sit there, staring at the plate filled with three slices of toast that had been covered in peanut butter (Rubedo's fault for her new food addiction), she was creating something inside of her. Something, which she had already thought of, that wasn't entirely human. It wouldn't have been, not with a mother like her or a father like him. That wasn't a problem, she didn't really mind. She would worry for the child's childhood, which she would protect with her life but the thought of having something within her; inside her stomach, being made at that moment was dreadfully scary. Her little fingers were caressing the lower half of her abdomen; wondering what lay beneath her fingers. A boy or a girl? Would he have black or red hair or would he inherit his uncle's hair and go white or red? What eyes would he have? Gold, blue, green, purple…she half prayed they would be something natural so the baby wouldn't end up getting caught up in the murderous affairs, somehow, that his parents went through. That would scared her; "parent". She liked kids; hell, she loved kids. She loved seeing babies laugh and giggle in their push chairs and she remembered seeing a little boy, about three years old, wearing a lime green jump-suit like thing at six o'clock getting excited and going "Daddies car! We're going in daddy's car! Daddies car!". That made her smile and laugh. They were amazing but she didn't have to raise them into fine humans; she didn't have to make sure everything was perfect for them; they grew up perfect and they were happy. She didn't want to screw up somehow in life and become a parent of a child that had committed suicide or had an eating disorder and she knew she was looking too far into things but everything counted; even how she spoke to the baby in her tummy. Her hands began to tremble as she sat there in her sleepwear; her heart thudding quickly.

But what if Albedo took her away…? What if the creature in her mind seeped into the babies mind…? What if Gabriel hit her too hard … What if Dmitri didn't want the baby interfering with his plans? What if she ran out of blood? What if-

She was going to faint.

She was going to drift off into a realm of nightmares; slam her head on the wooden table and fall unconscious. Or she was going to be sick. Something constricted around her heart tightly, causing her to wince as she sat there; the world spinning around her at a fast, uncontrollable pace. Her breathing became uneven as the panic began to set in and the noise of the thunder drifted from her eardrums. Her body seemed to have forgotten to bring air to her brain, causing a dizzy spell to overcome her. Shutting her eyes tightly, she put a hand on her forehead; keeping her fingers softly against her abdomen. A few months ago, Gaignun had taught her to calm herself; told her how to keep her breathing even if she ever felt the need or overwhelming sensation a panic was going to fall over her like a crashing waterfall. Closing her eyes, she tried not to breathe like a fish out of water, and slowly filled her lungs through her nose, feeling her body trembling. Panicking wouldn't be doing the baby any good. But as that little thought buzzed through her mind like a bright firefly, she was off again; feeling her heart pounding quickly, trying to pull as much oxygen through her as possible in an attempt to stop her calming down.

'Oh goodness the baby…' she whispered through her mind, clutching her shirt with her left hand tightly. 'What am I doing? Oh no, calm down please…' she seemed to beg her heart to slow; beg her bones to stop trembling like the branches of the trees were outside in the wind. Pushing her spine straight, she lowered the hand on her forehead to her lap, shooing all the thoughts of how she could be affecting the baby away. She locked them in the back of her mind and threw away the key; concentrating just on breathing. In through the nose, out through the mouth. The noise of the storm ran through her mind again as the dizzy spell drifted from her brain. Her heart evened its pace finally as she felt her body stop its once uncontrollable trembling. Everything would be okay, so far; just okay. Parting her eyes gently, she looked across the straight, not moving kitchen and reached foreword for the still warm mug of hot chocolate, which she began to sip slowly. On her left, she felt the heat emitting from the radiator; her flesh feeling better then it had done. Nice and calm, nice and calm, just as he taught her…

The past three or so months had been difficult for; extremely complicated. Each day was like undoing knotted up worsted that just got worse and worse as she pulled at the strings. When she had first missed her period she had thought nothing of it, which looking bad she realised to be a stupid little thing. She had heard from a few friends she had made at the Durandle that if the body lost a lot of weight then it would stop producing eggs, but that was apparently nothing to worry about if periods weren't missed too long. When Faith had heard the stupid rumour she thought of how pathetic it was! If a body was weak enough to miss a period that was bad, full stop but she couldn't help but think that was her problem when she hadn't had hers. During that time she was losing weight for the wedding, which Gaignun wished she hadn't done but she couldn't help it. She was naturally skinny as it was, but she didn't lose too much; no where near enough to make her ill but her mind just turned on its ignorant button and figured it was that. Even when she had cravings she ignored what it could have meant and ate what she wanted. She craved anything sugary; skittles, chocolate, cakes…anything! It was when she began to get sick along with missing her second period that she began to panic and worry. Worry hard. When she was ill, blood vessels appeared on her cheeks like bright red freckles and despite having hidden her sickness from Gaignun extraordinarily well, she couldn't hide the blood vessels. Not even with an ample of makeup! He noticed them, of course he did and worried for her yet nothing came out of it. She said she didn't know but something in her eyes must have given her away because he kept an even closer eye on her, even stating it could have been all the sugary food she was eating that might have made her ill! Just a few weeks ago he attempted to stop her from eating them, but of course she couldn't really; not with the hungry baby inside of her. She didn't understand how she had gotten pregnant. With the wonders of technology all she had to do was take a pill, which she did whenever she had to and voila! But still, a little baby had been made in her womb. Whoever invented the damn pill obviously didn't think of the lack of effect it would have on U.R.T.V's and…whatever in the world she was. Faith knew Gaignun wouldn't be mad about the situation; he would be overjoyed, which he had proved the previous night but still she was too frightened to tell him. Eventually, she had worked up the courage to tell him on the night of her twenty-first birthday.

That one night had meant **everything** to her. She had planned the entire thing out; from start to finish yet of course, chaos had ruined the whole thing by not badgering onto Gaignun (like she had asked him) to skip work just to be with her. But no, he didn't listen and instead of telling her husband she was pregnant she killed a room full of people and her best friend. She sighed softly, closing her eyes once more as she pushed the thoughts from her mind. That didn't matter anymore; she was going to get better soon with a family, just like she had always wanted.

"You should eat that before Jr. comes down," came the cool voice of chaos from behind her. His voice entering her ears was unexpected yet she didn't jump; perhaps it was from his tone or from that creepily serene aura he carried about him. Instead of becoming frightened for a second, she just tenderly looked over her shoulder; the curls of her hair perching on her shoulder to cover part of her pale, slightly blood vessel covered cheek.

Wrapping her hands tighter around the mug, she watched as chaos gave her a gentle smile before moving about the kitchen to make himself a hot drink. He was oblivious to the almost unemotional expression she carried that she didn't know she was showing. As she watched the older, yet somehow younger, boy, her heart thudded beneath her ribs in a warning to her thoughts that would fly through her mind. She would have to tell the boy ('Man,' she corrected herself) about the pregnancy; the man that ('I'll go with guy…' she thought once more) she was carrying a baby. How would he take such news? No, she couldn't think of the future anymore; she had to take things one step at a time.

"The weather is horrible out there, isn't it?" he questioned, looking out of the window with his eyes that were the colour the sky should have been. He put a spoon in his cup, mixing the tea with the sugar silently; the metal not touching the cobalt mug once. The windows creaked when the gust of wind pushed against them; the raindrops begging to come into the now heated home. Neatly, he placed the spoon into the sink before turning to the table she sat at to sit down. When he gazed at her, she managed to nod in answer to his question; unsure of whether her dry mouth would allow her to talk or not. He sat down opposite her, gazing at her with his eyes that would try to twist inside of her and see what was wrong. Unknown to her, she carried an emotion of dread in her eyes that could easily be picked up on. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yes," she lied, putting on a smile as she took a sip of her drink. Chaos unconsciously copied her movement. Of course she hadn't slept well; another night of disgustingly horrifying nightmares but she wouldn't admit that to chaos. "Did you?"

"I did, thank you," he replied gently with a smile identical, yet truer, to hers. He listened to her silence for a few moments before talking softly. "It's quite strange…" he began softly, worming over his words to make sure he was picking the right ones for her to hear. "To be here again…"

Lowering her eyes, Faith reminisced for a few moments the times she had spent with chaos; the pain, the fun and the love; a mixture of so many emotions and joys and even hatred in such a short amount of time. The house they sat in had collected every speech, every sigh and every yell that had been emitted into the air; everything. After so many years of what she believed to be hell, he had returned to be at her side. Just like Gaignun, she had put chaos through a lot and as if she were opening her eyes she realised how she had put him through more then what Gaignun had experienced. She had sworn at him, punched him and made him bleed. Without her knowing, tears began to stream down her face as she sat there, thinking of all the terrible deeds she had performed upon chaos that he had taken. A part of her despised him for what he had done; for putting her with Albedo and creating that life for her yet she had **deserved** that. Chaos hadn't deserved anything that she did to him. Her hands began to tremble around the mug she held and a voice echoed through her mind; as tender and as soft as silk.

"Why are you crying?" the sweet chaos asked her, reaching over to caress her hand softly with his own, surprisingly bare one. The question pulled her from her thoughts, causing her to look from the table to his eyes; filled with concern he had attempted to hide. Sniffing, she shook her head from left to right. Small bolts of electric flowed from him to her heart, filling her with the feeling she was being cared for; something she had only just noticed in years. He cared for her and she treated him terribly. She deserved hell.

"Why have you followed me throughout my life…?" she questioned as gently as she possibly could. Her voice was beginning to break in places, yet she couldn't care less. With the sleeve of her yellow sleeping jumper, she wiped her face from the tears, refusing for anymore to leave her eyes. Crying was stupid, as she always reminded herself. "You could have left me with Albedo. Your **duty** was to leave me with him. I assume the moment I left these walls you did too and haven't returned since that day I did; the day I killed Emilia."

Gazing down at her trembling hands, he took a moment as he usually would do to think of an answer; to make sure his words to her ears were ideal. Eventually, he spoke in his even monotone voice. This was what she wanted: answers, finally and hopefully answers that wouldn't be as silly as 'I care for you'. "My concern has never been with Emilia, your father, Gabriel or Damion. It has been with you. I think we have established neither of us are …" he paused for a moment before continuing. "Human, as such."

"If you're going by textbook, no we're not," she told him with a little frown. "But by that assumption then no one quite is. There are people that can use Ether; there are people with special abilities that go beyond writing and drawing and other things. Chaos, I don't want to talk about this. I want to know why you stayed with me."

"To protect you," he replied solemnly. "Simply that is it. I haven't any idea what you are Faith," he sighed deeply, retracting his hand from hers. He re-wrapped it around his mug, which was what she did too. "There's a story, of an angel that begged to go onto human grounds. The Angel pleaded with God, wishing to experience what the humans were and eventually was born, to a woman who died shortly after the birth. This Angel lost all her powers when she became a human but was like a blank canvas. People could draw upon her but she could not draw upon herself. She relied on the other humans for her powers, which included breathing. She couldn't breathe until she touched her mother's arm. Later, as she passed different types of people. When she went past an artist she learnt how to draw spectacularly; when she hugged a chef she could cook. But, this became a curse at the same time. People could mingle with her mind and when someone learnt what she was they used her for the worst of things; murder and all types of Sins."

Faith frowned at his story for a few moments before shaking her head. "What became of her?" she asked, almost dreading the answer but chaos sighed slowly.

"I do not know," he answered heavily, taking a sip of his tea. "Perhaps it was just a story; perhaps not but you remind me of the Angel."

A laugh emitted from her lips as she sat there, shaking her head. "Oh wow, first I'm mental; that's fine, I can deal with that, and then there's Demonic Possession and now I'm an Angel!" another mocking laugh escaped the back of her throat, causing a tear to drip down her face. "Do tell, how is that possible? I'd be dead."

"Reincarnation," he replied solemnly, ignoring her amusement.

"Oh don't tell me you believe in that!" she laughed again, before having her eyes caught up in his gaze. There was something so stern; so still about how he watched her in relation to her sentence that she couldn't help but freeze slightly. Her lips sealed as she watched his still figure, wondering for a few moments whether he was telling the truth but it was chaos; he knew all that went on in the world. If he said something was true then it was, but she couldn't be the reincarnation of some Angel that had obviously lost herself within the realms of humanity like a child lost in a shopping mall. If so, no one would have known of her origin save for Gabriel so no one could have toyed with her mind so. Looking down at the table, she held her breath for a moment before tilting her head to the side to look him in the eye again. "Are you for real?" she finally asked with an airy voice.

"As real as I can be," he responded with his even tone. His tone, combined with his facial expression caused her heart to jolt slightly as if the thunder outside had struck her. Perhaps it was a warning to all the events that would be unfolding out in front of her like a fan. Looking her over with his gentle eyes, he allowed them to rest on her quickly pale growing face for a moment before he spoke in his caring manner. "Are you okay? You haven't looked that well lately."

"I'm fine," she quickly replied, trying not to think of what he had told her. He had to be a mental case, surely! Reincarnation didn't exist, nor could she be a reincarnation of an angel. Oh well, the answers would be there just as soon as she got into the Encephalon. "When I asked you about why have you followed me for so long, I meant in relation to the fact I've been," she frowned trying to find a good word within her mind but could only find one. "A bitch towards you. Each time you've been kind I threw it back in your face."

He paused, almost awkwardly before speaking in a tone she didn't recognise that was drenched with his suddenly airy voice. "It's fine, Faith," and with those three words he stood to his feet without anymore eye contact, taking his mug of tea with him and left the kitchen; exiting to the dining room where she knew he would be sitting alone, wanting to be away from her. Sighing, she lowered her eyes and reached over for the toast Gaignun had prepared for her and slowly began to munch it down, almost forcing herself to eat.

_Comments:__ I'm doing shorter chapters now. I know this is excruciatingly short but I want to do it little by little rather then crunch everything into massive chapters that in the long run mean nothing. Plus I'm kind of dreading coming to the end of Bitter Sweet. I don't really want to have a page with the words END printed on it XD Sounds sad, for just a story, but its means a lot (writing this got me through a lot of things that happened over the last couple of years). I don't know why but I really like that little moment between Faith and chaos where he just leaves XD Maybe all that abuse she gave to him really did affect him in some way. Hm, maybe we'll never know but at least she's finally realised her mistakes. I do like it when characters grow XD_

_Btw, I'm sorry there's a little bit of difference with Xenosaga character's personalities in this fic, especially as it goes on but I think that if they were lunged into this world there would be some growth; especially with Gaignun and chaos. If that makes sense, haha XD But yeah do enjoy :3 Oh I'm trying out a new writing style too with less blocky paragraphs XD It might just be for this chapter or others, who knows lol_

_I'm the next act: waiting in the wings. I'm an animal: trapped in your hot car._

_I am all the days that you choose to ignore._

_You're all I need, you're all I need. I'm in the middle of your picture: lying in the reeds._

_I am a moth, who just wants to share your light. I'm just an insect: trying to get out of the night._

_I only stick with you, because there are no others._

_You're all I need,_

_You're all I need,_

_I'm in the middle of your picture: lying in the reeds._

_It's all wrong, it's all right,_

_It's all wrong, it's all right,_

_It's all wrong, it's all right,_

_It's all wrong, it's all right,_

_It's all… It's all…_

_[Radiohead: All I need]__ why am I getting so attached to this silly little fanfic that at the beginning was supposed to be nothing but a typical kirschwasser story?_


	38. Our Videotape

**Comments:** I received a PM today by a person, who I won't embarrass by saying his username, about Bitter Sweet. One quote was "You have thirty-seven chapters of just coincidences. Nothing primly locks the characters together, especially your OC and Gaignun. They met when they were younger and immediately were kind to one another. This is unrealistic along with the fact they meet again and fall in love. The fact she meets chaos again is also plain coincidence. There is nothing strong to support your fiction and the route it has taken through the story."

I thought I had made this clear in previous chapters, or the story as a whole, that there is no such thing here as a coincidence. Everything has a meaning in this fiction, even little things like the pendant Gaignun purchased for Faith for an early birthday present as a kid. This fic isn't slowly slipping into nothingness. For the readers, this is the only hint I'm giving out in case anyone else feels the same way and finds it boring now, there is one final, life changing secret to be unlocked within Faith, Gaignun and everyone linked together. Basically, this story wasn't founded on coincidence. It was founded on destiny; a destiny each character shares because of Faith's existence. Lol I've TOTALLY stepped over the bounds of Xenosaga now XDD HMMM maybe we should just forget about the original storyline XD This is most defiantly AU now…Gah I hate myself for it Dx I don't suppose it's even fanfiction anymore!

RANT OVARH XD Enjoy! And I hope that didn't give too much away I just didn't want people thinking that Dx

EDIT: Microsoft Word said that chaos' isn't a word regarding his bedroom, so it changed it to chaoses which it then says doesn't exist! WTTHH? XD can someone tell me what's right because even the freakin word doesn't know o.o

_There's a gap in between; there's a gap in between where we meet,_

_Where I end and you begin and I'm sorry for us; the Dinosaurs rule the Earth,_

_The sky turns grey where I end and you begin,_

_I am up in the clouds; I am up in the clouds,_

_And I can't and I can't come down,_

_I can watch and can't take part, where I end and you begin,_

_Where you, where I, where we left us alone,_

_You left me alone; I left you alone,_

_X'll mark the place; like the parting of the waves; like a house falling in the sea,_

_Falling in the sea…_

_I will eat you alive; there will be no more lies,_

_I will eat you alive; there will be no more lies,_

_I will eat you alive; there will be no more lies,_

_I will eat you alive,_

_There are no more lies,_

_[Radiohead – Where I End and You Begin]_

_Chapter Thirty-Eight_

_Our Videotape_

It hadn't taken long for the food to be consumed by Faith, who had eaten at her fastest pace, which wasn't too surprising when she was eating alone. Only when there were other eyes upon her did she eat slowly; whether it was a force of habit or nervousness she never knew. She only knew it were a peculiar habit to possess. Looking at the clock on the wall she noted how it was almost eight in the morning; Gaignun still, quite slowly, getting ready upstairs. It had been about five or ten minutes (she wasn't sure at all) since chaos had left her in the kitchen alone, only having the thunder to provide her company. She wondered what he would be thinking in the dining room; what his mind was twirling around if it twirled anything around in the absence of people. Had her words of an attempted apology really dug into him so bad? Did her saying what she did open his mind to how cruel she had been to him? Her acceptance could have been his that she didn't love him anymore; that she truly didn't care but she did. At least she thought she did. He had done so much for her over the years. He had saved her from Albedo, brought her to her love and cared. Every step he took for her was one he thought to be the right one. Even if it hadn't been he had tried; that was what counted. But she swore, had hissy fits and … her hands began to tremble as she bit down on her lip, feeling her heart tense beneath her ribs. Letting out a little breath, she pushed herself to her feet; the scrap of the chair against the tiles following her movement. She took the plate along with the empty mug to the sink, pushed her chair back under the table and walked to the door that led to the dining room. Slowly, she wrapped the tips of her fingers around the doorknob; the sleeves of her thick yellow jumper so long they covered practically her entire hand. Holding her breath, she counted in the back of her mind up to five to settle her heart, before opening the door slowly. When it parted enough for her to step in, she paused; watching the white headed boy sat at the table with his fingers wrapped around the mug for a split second. His eyes were glazed, staring at the table yet staring at nothing at all. His left hand was at the top of his white, long sleeved shirt; tugging at the fabric of the collar softly.

"Yeshua," stepping into the room, she closed the door behind herself, landing them in their bit of privacy in the back of the house. Soon the other members would be awakening and it wouldn't be surprising if Gaignun would be making his way down the stairs as they spoke but it seemed all those facts were forgotten about. Like all the times she had been with Gaignun, the snowy haired boy and red headed girl were locked in their own little bubble, or world even. Guilt tingled in her little heart as she clasped her hands together, placing them over her stomach in an unconscious, motherly movement. The woman, who looked nothing but a little girl dressed in a pair of orange shorts with dinosaurs decorated on them and a yellow jumper, which too held a green dinosaur on the front, took a step foreword slowly further into the room as if the floor were made from caramel and stuck to her bare feet. chaos' eyes grazed over her as he heard her faint whisper of his name. When his eyes came to her face he could see her skin paler then usual; the blood vessels on show. He knew, of course he knew but he wasn't sure if Gaignun knew. He knew Faith knew too, but of course she would know; it was her body. When she didn't wear baggy clothes he could see the faint outlines of her new curve. He had noticed her cravings and knew she was being sick at least once a day. Even though she was oblivious to how she looked, he could see a weakness in her; her expression in her face as if she were about to faint. She felt weak, of course, but thought she was hiding it well. It was only when chaos stepped to his feet, grabbed her arm with his bare hand and directed her to a chair did she realise how bad she must have looked.

Calmly, he pulled the chair out for her, helping her with her balance. Kindly, he sat her down before curling some hair behind her ear. Looking into her eyes, he noted the troubled emotions seeping through, which possibly weren't helping with her body's situation. "How have you been sleeping?" he gently asked, tracing a hand across her cheek. The tips of his fingers grazed the blood vessels on show along with the dark rings beneath her eyes. From his little touch she felt a bolt of electricity like she was fifteen all over again, causing a shiver to run down the back of her spine. "Don't lie to me," he told her softly.

"Not well," she replied honestly as he took his hand from her cheek, which she was grateful for. She wanted no more shivers from him or feelings that felt like the thunder outside had struck her. He took the seat beside her, turning the chair so he could face her properly. "Yeshua, I need to talk to you. Not about me."

"Please, don't fret about what happened," he pleaded, not wanting her to be troubled about such unimportant matters. Her health was what mattered to him and to most likely her husband too. Not silly things that happened in the past between the pair of them.

"No," she sternly shook her head, which was becoming heavier as time went by. She was so tired despite the hot chocolate she had drunk. The lack of sleep was getting to her, and the fact she was creating a life within her wasn't helping at all nor were the thoughts but if she could get rid of them it would make some things better. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for how I've been with you," a tear dripped down her face that he quickly wiped away, not speaking to interrupt her. This time, she didn't feel his skin upon hers. "I should have treated you better; you were the only person that didn't label me and put me in a box to hate…You were so kind…I'm just sorry, Yeshua. I'm so sorry."

When he was sure she was finished, he put a hand on her shoulder, caressing her bone with his thumb softly. With his other hand, he flicked her chin up caringly; smiling when she looked him in the eye. "No more of this," he said to her. Nodding down at her stomach, he changed the subject."May I?" he asked softly, catching her eyes with his. She paused before parting her lips. A feeling ran throughout her like she was a child caught with their hand in the cookie jar. Fear almost prodded her heart along with dread; how had he felt about the entire thing? Was that why he was trying to stop her from shooting practise with Rubedo so often and not work on the Elsa as much as she did in her spare time? Oh she wished she had been smarter and hidden it from him!

"How did you…?" shock drowned her voice but quickly she nodded in answer to his question. His hand landed on her lower stomach, causing her to smile happily The jumper she wore was soft against his warm finger tips, and the idea of touching just where a baby was being created caused chaos to smile ever so slightly to himself. From where Faith was, she couldn't see the pulled up corners of his lips. "Gaignun never noticed."

"You were occupied with hiding it from him," he began to explain calmly. "You forgot about the rest of us."

Faith gave out a little laugh, smiling warmly at him. He couldn't help but smile back; the smile she had given him the warmest he had seen since she was a child. "I'm scared," she laughed, gripping his wrists with her cold fingers. She could feel the bones beneath his flesh; the pulse of his heart as she gripped him tightly. Despite the elevation in her facial expression, he could tell she was frightened through her tone along with the tightness of her hold on him. "I'm really excited too but I'm really scared of like everything. That's not bad is it?" worry clouded her eyes as she leaned towards him, whispering her next sentence. "I'm not rejecting the baby am I…?"

"No," he replied quickly with a shake of his head. "It's only natural for you to be frightened," he looked down at her trembling hands holding her wrists and held his breath as he made a movement that would either freak her out or settle her. Soothingly, he pulled his hands back but in a fluid motion, wrapped them around her own tenderly. He could feel the gold wedding ring along with her engagement one wrapped around her finger; the items cold to his touch. "Have you told Gaignun?"

"Yes," she replied happily, squeezing his hands tighter. "Last night. He was so happy. I've never seen him so pleased! I think he was happier then he was on the wedding and he couldn't stop giggling then like a little school boy," she smiled softly. "Remember?"

"Yes, I do," he replied, though he wouldn't think of the memory too much. That day hadn't been most pleasant for him on many levels. "I can imagine how delighted he was. But, why did it take you so long to tell him?" there seemed to be nothing but kind curiosity with his question, rather then something bad behind it, so Faith only sighed softly before giving a little giggle. Her guard had fallen as she placed all her honesty within chaos' ears; knowing he would not think less of her.

"I was scared," she answered, wrapping her ankles around the legs of the chair in a childish fashion that backed up her feelings of fright. "I had this silly idea that if I ignored it then it'd go away. It sounds like I didn't want the baby," she sighed hard to unwind knots that had appeared in her heart, frowning afterwards. "I did. I mean I do, I just…I feel nothing more then a child," her hands began to quiver as if they had been dipped in ice and the knots tightened once more, spreading to her chest as she tried to breathe properly. "What if I can't do this, chaos? I mean when you look at me to Gaignun he's so smart and so tall and handsome," she took her hands from his to wave them about; making comparisons to their heights. He watched her seemingly ecstatic hand movement with curiosity. "And so calm and collected and then there's me who's tiny, not pretty and who has long curly hair which makes me look a mess and I go off laughing and giggling and acting five when I should be acting my age and that's not even the biggest bit! I've killed people and I'm not a proper human and, and, I don't know chaos, I don't know…"

He looked into her weakness before taking her hands back in his. They were trembling from the emotions she was trying to tie under control. "I know," he began with a voice so soft that it was barely audible to the woman sat just a few inches away from him. "You're smart; far smarter then you believe. The other night when there was that problem with the Elsa, who fixed it?"

"I did," she whispered slowly, remembering there had been a small puzzle of lights down in the second floor that no one else could figure out but she. She couldn't remember what the lights had done or whatever, but it fixed something.

"Gaignun counts you as his equal," he reminded her with a soft smile. "With work and with everything else in his life. Your hairs curly naturally and it's beautiful especially when you don't dye it. You go off laughing and giggling, yes but your face brightens the room when you smile. When have you laughed and no one has laughed with you? You made Hammer go into a laughing fit by giving a little giggle," from causing her to remember that she did laugh on the spot, causing chaos' lips to stretch like a rubber band across his face. "If Gaignun heard you saying these things, what would he say?"

"Don't slouch dear," she began before sniffing. "You're being stupid; that kind of thing."

"You're going to be an amazing mother," he promised her as he squeezed her hand tightly. "Come on," with that he helped her to her feet, putting another hand on her shoulder for her balance. "I think you need some sugar. You look like you could fall asleep at any second."

Late in the morning, Faith had sat herself down at the window-seat in her bedroom, staring out of the window with nothingness in her face. She had changed her attire after having a bath, with Gaignun in the room rambling to her about whether or not to get a pregnancy test that would determine the sex of the baby (it was a conversation more to himself with the same words bouncing to and from the walls 'It'd ruin the surprise…But we need to know for baby things and for names…But still…'). She wanted to know, of course, but he still couldn't decide and wouldn't be silent for that half an hour she was in warm bubbles. Only she got to see how truly colourful his personality would get, though she assumed from the loudness of his voice everyone else in the household had to have heard him at some point. The outfit she had changed into was a simple one; a knee length baby pink skirt that had two layers; one smoother under one made of silk, and a second one that seemed to be a floral netting, which would have been horrible against her skin if it wasn't for the other piece of material. Her shirt was a thin strapped white one with more floral material amongst it; the pale pinks almost looking like they had been printed on the material with watercolour. The outfit was one she had fished from her wardrobe; amazed she could still fit into such things. She had worn it, if she remembered rightly, the first day they were at the Foundation. Not the day she met Gaignun. That was the second day perhaps…She couldn't remember to be precise but thinking of the day caused her hand to snap up to the clover pendant, which she held onto softly. She watched as the rain plummeted to the ground, not having held up at all. Instead it got heavier, while the thunder got louder. She wondered whether or not Shion would be over to assist with an Encephalon dive. Chances were, probably not because of the weather but she hoped so; she wanted answers.

"Do you know where your brother is?" a voice suddenly dug within her mind, this time causing her to jump as she was pulled from her thoughts. Looking quickly to the door, she saw Gaignun stood there with one of Damion's black jumpers on along with a pair of black coloured jeans. Both items acuminated his muscles vividly, which caused Faith's eyes to stay on him for a few moments longer then they should have done. Those muscles could crush her in an instant, if they wanted to; if Dmitri wanted them to. As a shiver ran across her shoulders, she lifted her head, looking into the eyes of Gaignun who, by his expression, knew she was eying him but it was unknown to him why the reasons were. When her mind calculated her asked a question, she immediately shook her head.

"I don't know," she replied, taking another few moments to slowly think something wasn't right about the question he bestowed upon her. "…Why?" she asked gently, running a hand over her stomach while Gaignun walked towards her. Deftly, he sat beside her on the seat, running a hand across her knee soothingly.

"Damion went to wake him up about ten minutes ago," he began as his hand moved to her stomach, soothing over her and the baby inside. Faith saw his eyes flashing with unhidden joy. "But apparently the rooms empty."

A frown appeared on her face from his words. Seldom did Gabriel disappear like that. "What does the room look like?" she asked softly.

"I don't know," he answered with a little frown himself. "It's nothing to worry about," he assured her though she wasn't worrying; she was more curious. Tenderly, he took her head in his hands and planted a soft kiss upon her lips; the heat of his body hotter than the sun itself. Pulling her head back, she broke the kiss almost abruptly, which made Gaignun bite his lip in nervousness of whether he had done anything to upset her. The smile she gave him told him not, and she quickly wrapped her hand around his before standing to her feet. Even when she stood and he was sat down she was barely taller then him, which embarrassed her more then often. Still, she pushed such silly thoughts from her mind and concentrated on Gabriel. Wasn't it curious that the man who possibly knew the ins and outs of her, had disappeared the morning chaos had given her that story? And the day after Gaignun had felt something in her that wasn't her? Coincidence? It couldn't have been.

"I want to check out his room, will you come with me?" she asked, looking into his eyes softly. She hadn't ever been within Gabriel's room; not once during the years of living together. She didn't know whether it was odd or not to not go within a brother's bedroom. Actually, thinking about it, she hadn't even been in Damion's or any other. The only room she had been in was the guest room, which was dubbed as chaoses. Nodding in reply, he tightened his hand around hers and stood to his feet.

Faith led him from the room to across the landing, hearing the television along with Rubedo's voice downstairs but contently ignored it. She walked to the door on the other end of the hallway, putting her left hand on the knob. Holding her breath, she took a long moment to twist it and push the door open; Gaignun having waited utterly patiently for her to do as such. The second they entered the darkened room, a gagging sensation overcame her as a pungent scent of decaying flesh mixed with blood entered her nose along with her mouth; slithering along her tongue so she could almost taste it. Cursing, she snapped her hand from Gaignun to wrap both of her shaking ones around her mouth and nose, hoping to somehow make the task of breathing more pleasant for herself. Gaignun had done the same, but far more calmly then Faith; a deep frown appearing on his face. The room looked normal in itself; a bed near a door that possibly led to a wardrobe, along with a desk scattered with papers but when she looked closer she noticed a tray, beside the bed that had been made so neatly a Sergeant would have approved, covered in what looked like the insides of a person; a heart maybe and a kidney but she didn't look too long. This was why she had never entered her brother's quarters.

Weakly, she made her way over to the desk as Gaignun investigated the dissembled parts of someone's body; the parts looking old and decaying slowly. With one hand, she glanced over the papers that were stained in blood; images here and there of wounds that she had sustained in the past along with her medical history. Each band she had obtained from going to the doctor or hospital was stored there, along with papers of the people she had frantically murdered. But when she looked over them, there was something odd about the entire thing. There were ticks; doodles of smiley faces along with long descriptions of how the people had been murdered along with the dates they had been born. Faith's heart began to skip as if more looking through the stuff would open the gates to something far more horrifying then she imagined. Biting her lip, she tried to contain her breathing before pushing some documents out of the way to search through the others. Just as her eyes crossed over a deceased persons name she felt her heart skip a beat in the most horribly way ever. In an instant she felt herself losing her balance as the name ringed through her head.

"Oh God…" she breathed heavily, hearing Gaignun's footsteps behind her. She felt the strength of his hand around her waist the second her knees tried to collapse underneath her body; her flesh trembling. The light dimmed in the back of her mind as she breathed, trying to keep herself from fainting. Gaignun looked down, noticing first the name of murdered Lock in the papers before seeing what had obviously shocked Faith. She felt as if she were going to be sick as tears streamed down her face. Covering her mouth, she screamed lightly; sobbing as she did. "It's not true…" she whispered as Gaignun pulled her back from the papers. "No, no it's not…oh God… You saw him!" she screamed, twisting from Gaignun's grip as she felt the panic cause adrenalin to skate through her system. She pushed her back against the desk, picking up the document in her shaking hands. As she did, a picture of Gabriel dropped to her bare feet. "You've seen him! He's bruised me!"

"I know," he quickly replied, nodding as he tried to hide his own shock of what had to be the impossible. "I've seen him. We've all seen him."

"Then how is he dead?" she screamed, hearing footsteps on the landing yet ignoring them. She quickly read off the words on the paper for Gaignun to hear so that it proved its existence. "Gabriel Clementine deceased on the tenth of June at the age of fifteen," her breathing hitched as she remembered that day being the day she hurt him for the first time. "Murdered by Faith Ackermann."

Just as she were about to turn to the papers, the pair of them heard a horrifyingly familiar click in their ears; causing them both to freeze. Slowly, Gaignun was the first to lift his eyes to the doorway where the click had originated from to see a barrel of a gun pointing in his direction. Faith followed the hand holding the gun to the face of Damion. Eyes widening, a numbness overcame her as she felt as if she were to fall to the ground. His blue gems glanced from husband to wife in a way she had never seen them before. Kind, loving Damion was holding a gun to her husband; obviously protecting what lay within the room. Perhaps now, an Encephalon dive wouldn't be needed. Tears streamed down her face as she reached to grab the desk to keep her body upright; her eyes trembling hard. Gaignun seemed unaffected by the gun pointing in his direction, obviously having found himself in a lot worse situations as a child, but still fear drenched Faith like water. She knew Gaignun wouldn't allow him to pull the trigger, and with Faith's own powers she could stop him too but what affected her was the fact he held the gun.

'But, this became a curse at the same time. People could mingle with her mind and when someone learnt what she was they used her for the worst of things; murder and all types of Sins.'

Was this …entire charade…the pain, the death and the blood all Damion's doing…? "Damion…" she whispered breathlessly, trying to get air into her fragile lungs. "Put it down…" she told him softly, trying to get the confidence back into her mind. This wasn't her; to be so fragile during a situation such as the one they were in. She would be fuming, angered but it was just the shock and the horror of Damion that grabbed her mind and mingled it down into nothing.

"Do you think you know everything now?" he asked her almost tenderly as he stood there calmly. He raised a brow to the trembling Faith who, after a moment, had gained her balance again and had her hands on her stomach. "You know nothing, you impudent little girl. Nothing of your origin, or of your powers. Who in the world do you think you are asking for a normal life when you posses what you do?"

"What are you talking about…?" she questioned, frowning deeply. "Is every…" she could feel the heat of herself running through her veins as the shock disappeared from her. This man was a fucking liar and she was going to make him pay. She didn't care for his damn speeches and only for the truth. Like Gaignun had said, he had been a father to her. He had even given her away at the wedding to the man who he seemed happy to kill at that moment in time. "…Person here a fucking mental case? It seems I'm the only one in the house who isn't nuts. What are you now, Damion? The fucking devil's second grandson or something stupid? What's Gabriel, or the one we've seen? A zombie? Oh and what am I? That Angel? Hah! Put the gun down," she said her last word firmly, glaring hard at him now as she pushed away any remaining thoughts of his disloyalty towards her.

"Your lack of acknowledgement disgusts me, Faith," he hissed towards her. "Your trust disgusts me. You fell into this world and became attached to everyone about you, including myself."

"I was a child," she countered hard. "A child that grew to love the people that cared for her and in time felt the trust. But you wouldn't know what trust is, would you Damion? Who the bloody hell are you? And Gabriel? I want to know what he is!"

"A pawn," he began as soft as silk. "A brother you had that died thousands of years ago just after your death," a snigger entered her ears as the raven headed man began to speak. "But just months after the death of that man," and he nodded towards Gaignun with a feral grin.


	39. Where I End and You Begin

_.com/ - click the link, if its there and help with my Project "The Book of Four"! If the links not there its on my profile ^^ Happy Easter all x_

_You're so hypnotising, could you be the Devil? Could you be an angel?_

_Your touch magnetizing, feels like I am floating; leaves my body glowing flowing,_

_They say be afraid, you're not like the others,_

_Different DNA; they don't understand you,_

_You're from a whole other world; a different dimension,_

_You open my eyes and I'm ready to go,_

_Lead me into light,_

_Kiss me, k-k-kiss me, _

_Infect me with your love and fill me with your poison,_

_Take me, t-t-take me,_

_Wanna-be your victim, ready for abduction._

_[Katy-Perry – ET]_

_Comments:__ It took me a year to write eight chapters…a year? Dx that's terrible! This year, despite it almost being May will have tons of chapters! Promise :3_

_Yay its MEMORY FLASHBACK TIME 8D lol I haven't done one of these since the one Faith was picking flowers on chapter…thirty-four or something. It was meant for an older chapter, I think thirty-four actually haha but I thought it suited here plus its just sitting in a document, all on its lonesome, along with a bunch of other chapter beginnings or other abandoned chapters I'm attempting to add into here. The majority of them of Gabriel related and though a lot of people hate him (Molly told me she was happy without him in the fic but there needs to be an evil one SOMEWHERE to make you love the others more. Plus Albedo's apparently not so crazy when he comes back to life *sniff* so yeah there needs to be someone else to annoy Faith. Though she does have Dmitri though I don't THINK he'd kill her…If he could O.o oh I don't know! XD) but I kinda like him. Somehow. For some reason XD_

_Chapter Thirty-Nine_

_Where I End and You Begin_

It's as _sweet_ & _seductive_

As a _deal_ with the _**d e v i l**_

"_Let me go…" she whispered, unable to pull a plea from her throat from the soreness of it from her yelling a few hours ago. Her shoulders were aching beyond pain she had felt to them before, her arms having been pulled back behind the chair she was seated upon. Her wrists were tied to the wooden chair with tight sheets he had ripped from the bed, along with her ankles preventing the young teenager any escape. They were digging painfully into her ivory skin now, not as bad as before she had to note; her flesh was slowly becoming a little bit numb as long as she stayed still. The girls fantastically golden hair fell in front of her face; some strands sticking to her cheeks and forehead from the warm sweat. Unfortunately, she was unable to move the irritating hair from her face, allowing it to mould with the tears and sweat emitting from her body. But of course, those weren't the only liquids coming from her. Two lines of blood were coming down from her forehead, skimming past her left eye and falling down her nose to slowly drop to the cold wooden floor below. The book, held shakily in the mans hand above her, was used too hard against her head, creating a gash; one of a many she knew. He wouldn't stop, not until she was a broken doll on the floor again - she wasn't going to get out from the restraints for hours. Though she knew her only way of escape from the pain about to be directed to her was to kill her, she couldn't see herself doing such a thing. She only killed whenever the anger; or that feeling she couldn't describe overcame her. She couldn't murder her older brother drenched in emotions of fear. "Gabriel let me go…"_

"_No!" he furiously yelled from above her, his voice a frightening below that caused her fragile self to wince. "Tell me something, Demon. Tell me something from the bible."_

_For a moment Faith blinked and searched her mind for something, trying to breathe quietly through her nose. She would find herself in something like this every week and no one knew about it – not mother, not Yeshua and not even Damion. Gabriel had planned their little 'moments' together precisely, often trying to drive the others from the house kindly. No one suspected a thing, not even when Faith was wrapped up in more bandages. The brother gave the excuse she had murdered someone else; not that lying was too wrong of course. It caused the Demon more punishments, which it deserved in the eyes of him. It all happened since that incident between her and Gabriel and it was obvious he wasn't prepared to forgive her, not just yet or maybe not ever. Finally, after some time a small smirk appeared on her face as she parted her lips to speak._

"_Leviticus, 20:13," she began, finally lifting her sore head to meet the eyes of her livid brother. For a moment they stared at one another before she continued; her voice light and fresh. "If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them shall be put to death for their abominable deed; they have forfeited their lives."_

_Faith could see his face dropping, his eyes widening in shock from the words coming from her mouth as if he had been slowly awakened. Wanting to take another hit to her brother she continued to speak. "I think you are much deserving as death in the Lord's eyes am I, Gabriel. The other hand of God homosexual? Tut, tut, you and Luis should have thought about that, shouldn't you?" she rose a brow, feeling the red liquid itching her skin as it continue to drip to the floor between her open legs._

"_You're a brat," he whispered; obviously stunned from the words she had thrust before him. He would have known, of course, what God believed but she assumed until he had heard it from some else that he wouldn't believe. She watched as his body began to tremble in the dim light of her bedroom; his once terrifying exterior being nothing but a shaken up child. Just as quickly as the emotions came into him, they disappeared; leaving with nothing but the terrifying older teenager he was. His long, thin fingers that were like claws themselves, caressed the edges of the bloodstained book he held; his eyes grazing up and down the body of defenceless Faith. A joy emitted in the lower half of his stomach as he realised, as if for the first time, how much she was in his hands. They had found themselves in these situations so many times but never had he truly realised his power over his little sister. Slowly, he sat down on the edge of her bed; his feet just a few inches from her. With his right foot, he pushed the chair legs to make her face him fully; the blood dripping near him. Her eyes looked into his, knowing that a lack of eye-contact would prove to be troublesome with him. "Why did God bless you with such a beautiful body?" he almost purred curiously._

"_Because I have such a disgusting face," she whispered truthfully. She was pretty; a pretty cute sort of thing who's features wouldn't really change with the next few years but she wasn't a beauty that was advertised in magazines or on the media. She was just simple; a pale girl with uneven lips, freckles sometimes but with bright eyes and like Gabriel said; she did have a beautiful body. An hourglass figure had begun to grow on the young teenagers body; a figure that would stick with her for life. The only good asset she found about herself. "God has to make up for something, does he not?"_

"_True," he replied. She felt the burn of his eyes upon her, making her shuffle uncomfortably on the chair. Or shuffle as much as she could with her prevented movements. "It's such a shame…" he began with a long sigh softly. "That those scars upon your right arm will prevent you from ever having a love…" he glanced at her arm momentarily; the forearm covered in at least one hundred, straight scars that looked like self-harm. Never in her life did she speak of them nor did people speak to her of them. She counted them once; one hundred and seventeen scars that looked like she had done them. But only two people in the universe knew where they had originated from. The man sat opposite her, who was eying her like candy._

"_I don't care," she muttered though she did entirely and her soft gems showed it, though Gabriel paid no more attention to the conversation he had just brought up between them._

_Humming what Faith believed to be a hymn in a terrifyingly joyous manner, Gabriel stood to his feet once more, prowling around her like a lion and its prey. His fingers played with the spine of the weapon, licking his lips momentarily as he gazed his sister up and down. Wincing, she followed the shadow of his figure as he moved behind her, feeling the fear drown her like water. That was when she whimpered uncontrollably, causing him to frown coldly from behind. Gasping sharply though she felt no air enter her lungs, she felt her body jolt as his hand ran through her sticky gold hair, moving it from her face almost tenderly like a real older brother would do. Breathing in shakily, she found a tear run down her cheek, slipping with the blood as it reached her chin. The two liquids mixed before dropping to the ground again. She could feel his lips pressing against her left ear as he purred terrifyingly: "I'm going to strike you," he told her as softly as possible like he was just telling her the weather outside. Fear overwhelmed her as she shut her eyes, letting out another noisy, shaky breath. "But you have to be quiet. Can you do that?" his fingers tugged at her hair in a peculiar way, which caused no pain to shoot through her head._

_Holding her breath, Faith nodded, squeezing her eye lids tighter. Her fingers squeezed together as she felt his body pull away from her; bringing some blood to pump to her long forgotten hands to cause a tingling sensation to run to the tips of her fingers. As he rose, then lowered the book, she felt a small bit of air move against her head, causing her to flinch as she believed the book was about to hit her. Frowning coldly, Gabriel raised the book once more; the shadow looming over her. "Do not move," she did not. Letting out the little air she had, she breathed through her nose, concentrating on anything but what was about to happen to her though her brain struggled to capture anything to think of. Again, she found herself flinching when she felt a little bit of air touch her skin. "I said do not move!" Gabriel yelled, causing her to hunch her shoulders like a small child. A bang rang through her ears as the book was thrown disgracefully across the bedroom in his rage, followed by a furious jump from the tied up girl. _

_Pain surged through her as she felt the fabrics being torn from her wrists and ankles by his shaking hands. Without opening her eyes, she didn't move an inch even when she was free; preparing herself for Gabriel's movements. His hand clamped around her slightly torn wrist, pulling her to her shaking feet. From not standing for so long, her thighs clicked in pain; her body banging against his for balance but still she kept her eyes shut tightly; not wanting to see his angered face. His hands that went on her body were trembling; shaking with the rage he was feeling for her disobeying him twice. When she felt her body flying through the air, she prepared herself for the wooden floor but instead, she felt the soft mattress and sheets of her bed on her back. The bed creaked from her sudden weight being thrust upon it, and before she knew it, she felt the weight of Gabriel upon her too. He pushed her body up so that she had her head lying against the soft pillow. Finally, she managed to open her eyes; the dark shadow of her brother overcastting her. His body prevented her from any escape, not that she'd even try. Attempting to escape would have devastating consequences. Her heart pounded quickly as he looked at her with almost a pained expression. Suddenly, his hands came to her face; his one covering her nose while the other covered her mouth. Panicking, she began to thrash as her lungs were cut off from the air she so desperately needed. To stop her legs from kicking, he placed his weight upon her body; his elbows trying to stop her arms but still, her little hands wrapped around his arms. She squeezed at his shirt, tugging the silk fabrics with her sore, tingling fingers but he ignored her; staring deep into her gems emotionlessly. That feared her more then anything else; the lack of emotion he held within his face. She could not tell whether he was angry or not; whether today would be her death day or she would survive. Somehow. Her grip became weaker as the lights dimmed within her mind; her body shutting down from the lack of oxygen._

"_I only want you to pass out," he assured her with a voice she didn't quite recognise. In her dimmed vision she saw something along his face; tears perhaps? "I only want you to pass out…" he repeated even quieter then before, pushing his forehead against hers as he waited for her body to become limp. The second she did pass into unconsciousness, he wasted no time to let go of her mouth and nose knowing her body would soon pick up on breathing again though she would stay in slumber for awhile._

"_Remember…" he whispered in her ear softly. "Remember what you did to me…And I'll make you pay for it."_

* * *

In the corner of her vision, Faith could see the slow, gentle movement of Gaignun's hand as he pulled it from his side; the movement so slow to indicate to Damion he wasn't going to pull any funny movements. With his emerald eyes still firmly attached to the blue gems of the almost identical looking man, he spread his fingers out in the air as his hand made its way towards Faith. Fear had managed to seep its way into his veins but he was not worried for a bullet in a common hand gun. If he wanted to, he could have frozen Damion on the spot then and there but there was something in his eyes that almost relaxed Gaignun. He would not pull the trigger. His eyes were not like the eyes of others who had held guns to the man; they were almost fearful themselves. He could sense emotions seeping in the air that seemed like an irritated man, yes, but not a man prepared to kill another human being. The only thing he had to fear was Faith's health along with the babies that was growing during the traumatic time. He was confused of the situation but she must have been devastated; he couldn't even comprehend what was dancing through her mind then. She looked a mess, simply put, standing there in the dark room only just about having gained her balance. Underneath her eyes black rings had appeared from her lack of sleep; her eyes were bloodshot and mascara had run down her cheeks mixed with her tears. She still looked beautiful; a horribly morbid form of beauty; a form that pained his heart like he had been stabbed. He wanted to take it all away; all this pain that she felt. And he would. Just as slowly, she pulled her hand from her stomach, before allowing it to be snapped up and swallowed by Gaignun's larger palm. Underneath his fingers he could feel her bones trembling; her hand sticky with sweat though he didn't mind. Her fingers tightened around his as she inhaled a shaky mouthful of air, biting her lip momentarily before speaking as strongly as she could.

"Me and Gaignun are not dead," she informed him almost sternly as she felt Gaignun's hand tighten around her own. For a fleeting moment she wondered where all her anger had disappeared to; why had she not struck Damion down uncontrollably like any other human? This man had done _something_! He was in on something that encircled her! Why else would he almost lure them into Gabriel's room before holding a gun to Gaignun? Damn, it was confusing; horribly confusing and enough to warrant a death from her but no she didn't do anything. The anger she normally felt was hard to latch onto. Was this how she truly was? A girl that got shaken up rather then angered at those who betrayed her? No, she couldn't be. That was weak. That was dreadfully weak and Faith Ackermann was not a weak girl. She tried not to excuse her lack of anger and instead punished herself mentally for it; demanding that she return to her usual state where she never felt fear nor did she cry. She couldn't cry over this man who had lied to her for about twenty years. "Whatever you mean by that is a load of crap. I bet at the end of this I'm just mentally disordered and you've been playing a sick little game to make me even worse! The way you and Gabriel and even chaos have spoken to me lately is just utter nonsense." She could feel it; the resentment welling up in her heart. Not weak, not weak; she wasn't ever, ever weak and Damion would not get her to cry again. He would tell her the damn truth and that would be the end. He would be punished for his cruelty; for lying to a woman who was once treated as his own daughter.

"You were dead," he spoke calmly, as if tendering to her like she was a child again. Finally, he lowered the gun to his side; switching the safety back on once more. When he did, Gaignun wasted no time to snatch Faith in his arms, pulling her against his body with his strong muscles; the fragile girl held within his arms. Protectively, he put her to the side of him, ready to hide her behind his back if he needed to. His arms wrapped firmly around her body as he pushed away the reminders that she could protect herself and she felt almost distain to him treating her so. After what happened with Albedo all those months ago, where she had almost died within his arms, he wouldn't let anyone hurt her. Not now, not ever. Not noticing their movement, Damion continued his speech. "And you both lived at some point too."

"Reincarnation?" Gaignun questioned with a growl at the end of his sentence. He too was obviously angered by the betrayal of the man he trusted so. It seemed Faith wasn't safe with anyone; not even Gaignun to some extent with Dmitri in his body.

"Perfectly so," Damion purred; his words causing Faith to scoff.

"chaos believes in that," she began, biting her tongue to stop herself from saying Yeshua. "But I highly doubt me and Gaignun have been reincarnated."

"Do you ever wonder where your love originates from…?" he asked slowly and softly, which added to his madness at that moment. He reminded her of something like the Mad Hatter. Coughing gently, she put a hand to her mouth as she tasted the disgusting scent of what could be a decaying corpse of Gabriel, hidden somewhere in the room. Then it occurred to her; where those pieces of disgusting flesh Gabriel? But could that even be possible with how long he was supposedly dead for? As she glanced around the room, Damion continued to speak in his annoyingly fancy accent. "When you saw her, how did you feel?" he was looking to Gaignun now; the same grin upon his face. "Honestly now."

Gaignun paused before sighing out gently. He looked down to Faith whose trail of thought had been broken by the question Damion had asked. One of his hands moved to run through her hair, though she wished not for sentimental touches; she wished for honesty only. They could kiss and cuddle later. Still, it felt a little soothingly nice to feel his touch. "I felt as if I knew you, Fay," he brought his hand back to wrap protectively around her. "When we had first met on the Foundation I felt as if I had known you my entire life. That's why I wanted to buy you the necklace," his eyes shot to the pendant around her neck momentarily; a symbol of their love and dedication which was stronger then the rings around their fingers.

"This is rubbish…" she whispered breathlessly, blinking a few times harder then usual; an unconscious signal of her inward struggles. "We fell in love. We were lucky to find one another. Maybe it was coincidence that we met. I was simply running and not looking where I was going. You were out for a walk. That's it."

"Whenever have I walked the Foundation during a working day?" he questioned solemnly. "I saw you the day before," he quickly said, causing her to frown hard. She felt a strange jolt in her heart she hadn't felt within her time of knowing him. "I saw you and I thought you were something different. You were wearing exactly what you're wearing today," she paused before trying to take a step back but his arms were too tight around her frail body; she was unable to pull from his grip. The scent of the body faded from her mind as she felt something run through her heart that she didn't understand. Anger? Disgust or joy?

"You basically followed me…?" she whispered, frowning even deeper. How utterly creepy! In some bizarre way. What in the world was going on? "What was it?" she questioned loudly. "What was it that you found so _different_," she mocked the word before continuing. "About me?"

"I don't know," he answered truthfully, raising his brows. "I don't know, Faith. And no, I didn't follow you. I felt like I should go for a walk, so I did."

"Oh yes," she began sarcastically, finally having wormed herself from her arms. She lifted them up in the air dramatically as she almost stormed around the room; the usual feeling of anger returning to her. But didn't Gaignun usually calm her? She was stomping loud enough on the old floorboards for the other pair downstairs to hear her. Hopefully they would grow curious of what was going on; for once she actually _wanted_ chaos in the room with her. "And I, you know with this magical feeling, felt like I should get wacked in the head by Albedo to come down to the Foundation and meet you!" she turned around to him suddenly; her back to Damion who they both had long forgotten about. "If you _felt_ something different," her voice was furious as she ground out hard through the back of her throat. Gaignun could see her hands trembling hard in fists and for the first time ever he felt true fear of her powers. "Then why the fuck didn't you stop Albedo from taking me? If you _felt_ these strange feelings why couldn't you collect me yourself from your brother? _Why?_"

"You were…" he began with a weak voice, only to be cut off by her.

"What?" she snapped, folding her arms firmly across her chest. Goose bumps had begun to appear on her frail arms along with her stick-like legs but she ignored the cold encircling her body; locking eyes with the man she was arguing with. "I was what, Gaignun? A Kirshwasser? _Just_ a Kirshwasser?"

"I began to feel for you when you were a Kirshwasser," he counted with what she could call his raised voice. She began to tug at the sides of her shirt while shuffling from foot to foot, obviously uncomfortable with the 'heated discussion' they were sharing. Little did they argue and he despised yelling at one another. They had enough problems between them and thinking of trivial matters weren't exactly going to help their relationship become stronger. "That's why I kissed you, why I cared for you so," his voice was far softer then the last sentence he had given her and she felt her own heart soothing from his voice. The trembling anger began to fall from her once again like magic. "I should have done more to take you from Albedo, I know that and I still feel guilt for that especially for the time he almost kil-"

"I don't want to know," she quickly said, shaking her head as she drowned away the memory he was about to speak of in the first Encephalon dive. Looking down to the floor she sighed hard; pushing away all the horrible feelings from inside of her. "This is like being in a horrible dream. Trapped in nightmares you can't escape from," slowly, she turned to Damion whose gems hadn't left her once. "Tell me the truth," she said firmly. She could feel a slightly shaking hand of Gaignun wrap around her own once more; their heated discussion obviously having fallen into the past. Neither of them could understand their feelings to one another; how they had grown so quickly and speaking of it just confused them and angered Faith. She was too down to earth to believe in what she thought to be illogical. "No bull-crap. Just honest truth. Am I mad or not?"

"No," Damion replied honestly with a smirk on his face. "Why do you find it so hard to believe in reincarnation, Faith?"

"Because there is no proof," she answered calmly. Gaignun could feel a placid peace emitting from her skin; the anger having fully gone now. Maybe, soon, they could stop her sudden personality changes. "I don't remember anything from a previous life. I can only just about remember what happened in my own."

"Somewhere, deep inside of you, there are memories," he told her. "You just need to unlock them."

"How do you know all of this?" she questioned, moving back into Gaignun's arms. A hand went down to her stomach, running along where the baby lay deftly. "Damion who are you?"

"Your butler," he began slowly, softly. "From thousands of years ago," Faith scoffed once more before laughing.

"Oh wow," she smirked, brushing a tear from her face she created from the laughter. "So what, your Frankenstein or something?" she brought her hands up to her face to make the ugliest face she could; pulling her features here and there. "Raawwrr brains!" she growled, causing Gaignun to smirk. She let go of her face and smiled sweetly at Damion who simply ignored her. "I can be Frankenstein too."

"Don't play games," he told her sternly.

"I'm not," she replied, pouting as cutely as possible. "You are," she pointed at him before tutting him like he was a child. "Your nose will grow if you keep on lying," Gaignun squeezed her arm, almost in an attempt to stop her but inside he couldn't help but feel a little tickled from her words. He too wasn't sure of whether to believe what was going on but just as long as they could stop her outbursts he didn't care.

"Faith," he said, frowning like a father would a child. "What era are you most fond of?"

"The Victorian," she replied. "Though I've no idea what that has to do with anything. What, am I a Victorian baby?" silence was her answer and she shook her head. "Load of crap. Look, I'm going downstairs to grab a coke. You can wait up here for the police and the men in white coats to take you away because I'm sure underneath these papers is evidence you've toyed with my mind," she paused before speaking again. She tilted her head to the side almost curiously, raising a brow at the same time. For a moment she allowed her eyes to glide up and down the slim figure of Damion, pondering cutely. Biting her lip she glanced up into his eyes; something sinister flashing within her own. "Or I can just kill you now."

"You wouldn't want to do that unless you were attached to a life support machine," he corrected her before tilting his head to the side as she had done. As he watched the confusion return to her once steady glance, a feral grin grew along his jaw line. Gaignun's hand tightened around her arm and his own eyes contained emotions of confusion. "You've lost enough blood in your life to die, Faith Ackermann. The only person supporting you and that baby inside is me," she felt a horrible jolt run through her body as she began to shiver hard. Just as he began to speak again, they heard the click of the safety gun switch off once more, causing her to gasp softly in the back of her throat. Gaignun pulled her behind his back, almost as if such a move would save her life. "If I am to die, you will too. And the baby inside of you will."

Biting her lip, a fear she had not felt within her life consumed her as the metallic weapon lifted from its resting place; the barrel pointing straight to Damion's own skull. Griping to Gaignun, she felt as if her body would fall to the ground from the panic she was feeling; her heart pumping her little amount of blood around her body way too fast for her to catch up with. She cared not for her own life, but the life of what lay within her; the devastation it would cause Gaignun for the baby to die. It was as if she forgot about her own mortality at that moment, caring for nothing but the child. "Please don't." she whispered, feeling a tear run down her cheek to drop to the ground.

Comments: I'm unsure about uploading this one, but fudge it, here it is XD Staring a Faith/Gaignun spat 8D no one said marriage was easy. :3 I wonder where Yeshua is during all this…hmmm she heard footsteps… xD


	40. Making Noises like an Old Piano

_Chapter Forty_

_Making Noises like an Old Piano Covered in Dust_

_Comments:__ Wee bit I forgot to mention…Bitter Sweet II __is__ an entire story in itself. So technically this is Chapter Eight of Bitter Sweet II. *smiles innocently* Just because I hint towards answers doesn't necessarily mean a.) they are answers or b.) it's the whole storeh 8D oh & I'm having a Gaignun haircut again x) to the people that know who he is XD man im crazy o.o_

_You think you know me and everything that you consider me; you think you know my name,_

_You think you see me, like the way I'm strong and stand by you_

_I am fragile too; yeah I am fragile too,_

_Yeah I will be just fine as time goes by. It may hurt at nights but I will be fine. I will be just fine._

_You think you see me, like the way I'm strong and stand by you,_

_But I am fragile too, I am fragile too,_

_Just like you._

_[Kerli – Fragile]_

Time passed slower then it ever had done before in her lonely little life; her dry, pale pink coloured lips parted softly to reveal her white teeth beneath. A trail of air slowly wormed its way in and out of the oval gap between her lips; providing her with little air while her body felt as if the blood had stopped pumping the life throughout her. The tips of her pale fingers were becoming numb whilst a tingling sensation drew its way across her body, starting with the very top of her toes, drifting over her chest. Translucent tears that glistened like gems in the musky room ran down her face to drip to the ground deftly; her multi-toned, trembling eyes staring at the man that had been her crutch for the past twenty-one years of her life. Whatever the story was behind her tantrums to her mystic powers did not matter; all that mattered was the silver pistol he held with such reliance it was as if he really were going to pull the trigger. Thoughts dipped in and out momentarily through the gaps in her mind, like birds; fluttering away with only a feather left for her evidence of what she had thought of during the numbing few minutes that felt like hours. As mad as it was, a thought of chaos tickled the very edges of her common sense; the side of her brain that would make her work, to sort out the situation at hand. His speech, of the Angel nuzzled her heart lovingly; reminding her of what her reason could be if it all were true, but he was Yeshua; a man that new so many great things in the world, just like the other man, Wilhelm she had met so long ago. Surely, if she was really someone of meaning, of God himself, then Yeshua would know. But, the world kept the strangest of secrets from people. Perhaps this was one secret she would be forced to unlock herself, and unlock she would but a tingling sensation came into her spine as she managed to spread her numb fingers out from the palm of her hand. What would doing this unlock? A world of pain and misery, such as her first attack on Albedo had done in the Encephalon dive? Would this all be part of Damion's sinful plan? Whatever the plan was to start off with. They knew nothing of the world about them. Closing her eyes slowly, she pushed her lips back together, holding a shaking breath within her lungs. Using her left hand, which wasn't spread out like her right, she clutched Gaignun's hand, whose was shaking at the same time. Tightening her eyes, she felt a little bit of fear slip from his flesh to her own; a small movement that proved to her what she wanted to know. Fear, as pure as anything, grabbed hold of her heart like the hand of a Demon; wanting to twist and pull at it, to distract her from what she had to do but no, she wouldn't allow the fear to consume her like a hungry werewolf. This was all true; this was happening so fast that her brain felt as if it would melt and spill right out of her ears, but she tightened her grip on her love, before allowing more tears to drip down the sides of her cheeks.

She was going to be a mother; she had to face this to save her babies life, along with his father's sanity, before the man opposite her pulled that darn trigger. Just minutes after she had whispered 'please don't', she gathered all the courage within her little heart, letting out a little sob as she did, before lifting her hand into the air; just beside her face. Gaignun didn't know. Albedo hadn't a clue, as far as she knew. But she had seen; actually seen with her eyes what Gaignun had done to his older brother that day where he had the quote 'Ebony and ivory' sprung upon him.

('Everything will be fine,') she whispered to him through the mental link she had wormed herself in one of the days after they had met; something no one had pondered upon or at least spoken about. She had no idea whether Gaignun was curious of the fact she could do what only his siblings could. Well, he probably was curious; more then curious of course, but he never said anything.

Parting her lids, she shot her gaze straight to the arm clutching the pistol, not caring to see the expression of Damion who was possibly enjoying the pain he was inflicting on the woman who used to be like a daughter. Biting the edge of her lip, she felt the eyes of Gaignun upon her face, but didn't allow it to distract her. Concentrating, she fought against all other thoughts as she thrust herself into a crash course on U.R.T.V powers. Never would she be weak. In a split second, a peculiar feeling drew over her like water running through her veins, alongside the crimson blood. Her eye tingled, but just before she shut it to stop the strange sensation, the colours of blue and gold flashed around her pupil for less then a split second but long enough for both men to see. Blinking hard, a hand went to her forehead as a pain emitted from her flesh, followed by a relieving sensation like she had let go of every weight in her body; that she was flawlessly hovering in the air. Two noises came to her ears as she lowered her head, looking down to the ground; her hand slipping from Gaignun's own, once tight, grip. One sound was the faint gasp of her husband along with a little shocked cry of her name while the other was a pained scream from the back of Damion's throat. Registering these noises, she heard a bang, with a squelching sound following it like someone had dropped a water balloon without it bursting. Biting her lip, she understood exactly what she had performed; the power only Gaignun was supposed to have yet she had gained it. He had drawn upon her and left his mark on her: the Angel that wanted nothing then to be a human, who at many points in her human life wanted to be nothing but dead. Taking a step back, she wouldn't allow herself to look at what she had caused; frightened of everything about her. Having long forgotten about the sensations she felt from drawing the powers from her body, her mind raced with thoughts of what she could possibly do; of what she could be. No way was she an Angel; that was impossible. Angel's didn't Sin like she had done within her years nor were they so weak that their mind could be over taken by nothing but a human. If she was an Angel and this was all true, why hadn't God protected her? Why had He allowed her to walk through pain, harming those around her? Why had He abandoned her? Or had she abandoned Him for wanting to be a human? So many questions with too few answers…

Gaignun had almost run to Damion the moment blood shrouded his sights; the simple liquid scorching every one of his senses as he leant to the identical looking man, who was huddled upon the floor with one less limb then he had started off with in the day. The gooey liquid stuck to Gaignun as he leant across from where he knelt to Gabriel's bed; the man's arms long enough to grab the sheets from the doorway in the small bedroom. His fingers printed red against the once clean sheets, which were soft against his flesh; warm like the porcelain of a coffee cup. This wasn't what he wanted to do, of course, but the man that was crying aloud in pain, cursing the girl that had her back against the opposite wall, was the life in the story. If his words were true then the blood loss would kill three people; two of whom innocent. Tugging the white sheet, he managed to get it to unstick from the mattress, pulling it towards him. Sharply, he tore at the cloth, making sure he had enough to warp around Damion's wound. It poured from the hole in his arm everywhere; all over Gaignun, the floorboards and of course Damion himself was damp with the substance. Gaignun's hands were steady as he silently worked on Damion; pushing the cloth as tight to the man's gaping wound as much as possible, ignoring any pain he might have caused him. For all he cared he deserved it and pain was something he'd have to ignore if he wanted to survive the attack Faith had performed. Though Gaignun had a sneaking suspicion he wished not to survive the attack if his words were true about him being the life support for Faith and the baby.

"Why did you do that?" Gaignun finally asked with an almost stern voice, tying a knot at the top of the already bloody white sheet. In the corner of his vision he could see the weapon Damion had pointed to his own head; stained, of course, in red. With his left hand, he pushed the safety on before sliding it across the floorboards; creating a long, red stain as it travelled to rest next to Faith's bare feet, where it, of course, would be safer. Faith, whose arms were crossed tight around her womanly chest, finally lifted her head; an ache coming from the back of her neck from the awkward position she had been in. She could see raw pain on Damion's face, reminding her of the pain she had inflicted on so many other people in her lifetime. Guilt pondered her heart uncontrollably; she had hurt the man that had cared for her so. The man that had been like a father to her. Though she knew he had done something to her, he was still the person that had brought her up. He had been so kind and a part of her mind still blanked out what he had done; the part of her mind where the guilt was growing from like an unwanted weed. The scent of blood didn't affect her, like it did Gaignun, and instead just stared; with her mouth agape like a fish. Never had she heard Gaignun ask a question to her reasons for harming someone in such a way, but this time she had thought it through. Rather then cause Damion little pain, and perhaps use a different power she had, she had almost killed him. Thinking about it, she was in a worse position then she was less then five minutes ago. And Gaignun knew that. "Faith," he spoke firmly, looking into her eyes for a split second; his eyes unreadable as usual, but hers just like they were a year ago. Fearful, hurtful; everything she truly wasn't. Still, he wanted an answer; he wanted to know why she had done, what he could only call stupid. He loved her, oh yes he loved her more then anything and little, very little, annoyed him but this… This was one of those things that did. She had spoken to him; she had told him things would be fine and then caused him pain rather then doing it uncontrollably. "Why did you do that?" he repeated firmly, looking back to Damion.

Putting a bloody finger on his forehead, he re-opened the mental communication to his older brother, not wishing to shout to grab his attention. ('We need you and chaos to come here, now. No questions, Rubedo.')

"I lied…you know…" Damion ground out through the pain, looking up to Faith with his dulling blue gems. His voice was far rougher then they had ever heard; the pain he felt more then evident in his voice. Even the adrenalin wasn't helping to numb his sensations. Slowly, she took a step back, almost slipping over the gun on the ground as she did as such. Her body didn't feel like it belonged to her; it was like driving the E.S Asher once again. Gazing into his eyes was like having her pupils poked with needle; sharp as anything. "About…me dying and you along with the baby…" relieve overcame the couple in the room, though Faith was overcome with culpability as tears dripped down her face. Never in her life had she wanted to harm, let alone almost kill Damion but this wasn't the man she knew, she had to remind herself that. This man was a liar; the worst person in the room. Or so she thought. No, he was! He had toyed with her mind, had played so many mental tricks upon her and this, what just happened, was utter proof of that.

Gaignun leaned back on the balls of his feet, crossing his bloody arms over his knees; the blood seeping into the black clothing oddly; the red almost glowing against the shade. From where he was crouched, he could see chaos followed by Rubedo emerging from the staircase, though Faith had heard their footsteps. Looking at the bloody mess running from Gabriel's bedroom, both chaos and Rubedo feared the worst. They could see the faint outline of Gaignun's back who had turned from them the moment he saw their presence, along with the blood running out the room but that was it. "Gaignun?" Rubedo questioned quickly; his voice drenched with panic as he ran ahead of chaos, stepping into the bedroom. He too, almost choked on the pungent scent of fresh and old blood in the air; looking from his brother to the bloody heap of Damion in the room. Eyes widening, he had no idea how to react to the situation; looking at Faith whose eyes were clouded with pain. As chaos followed, showing no change in expression, Rubedo's eyes followed the line of blood across the floorboards to the weapon; his eyes glancing momentarily on the papers but he had failed to notice the organs place neatly at a tray near the, now unmade, bed.

"Look at this!" Faith suddenly cried, swinging her arms out from her body. Tears streamed down her face, chaos seeing nothing but the fifteen-year-old blonde he had tendered to so many times. Her eyes were staring deep into his sparkling ones; caring not for anyone else in the room but him; the person that had been at her side from the beginning. She felt as if she was going to pass out; her mind so dazed as she stood there with legs that felt like jelly. Her voice reflected the pain within her heart that was aching; her hands shaking like paper in the wind. "Why didn't you know? You're supposed to be _Yeshua_ and you didn't know any of this?"

Shaking his head was all the stunned chaos could do. Questions welled up in his brain as he tried to understand what had happened but the actual events, of Damion betraying everyone never crossed his path. Faith allowed her knees to fall weak to the ground; smacking into the floorboards hard enough to create bruises but she cared not for the pain nor could she even really feel it. Placing her hands on the ground for balance, she looked at Damion who looked her in the eyes; something sinister placed within his that were slowly fading as the life drifted from him with the blood. Tears fell as everyone in the room waited for her to speak; half of the people unsure of what to say at all. Slowly, she shook her head, letting out a sob as she did as such. Unknowingly to her, Gaignun was telling Rubedo the story through the mental link so at least one more person knew Faith hadn't acted out, to some extent, in the bedroom. "I don't need to live with answers…" she finally whispered, looking into his eyes once more painfully. Letting out a long sigh, she felt a tingling sensation draw through her mind; the calamity of Gaignun, telling her everything was okay. When this feeling of soothing washed over her she breathed properly for the first time in the room. Once her pause was over, she spoke again, albeit softer then she had done before. "I'm going to…" she swallowed a lump in her throat, trying not to shake her head again. "You're going to die," the four words did not faze him or anyone else in the room.

"You may kill me in this form…" he whispered weakly, trying not to fall back from the pain mixed with the lack of energy. "But …I will still live…In the other form…"

Slowly, Faith shook her head, lifting the palms of her hands from the floorboards before placing them back down again as she tried to contain each drop of emotion in her heart. From her shoulders to the tips of her fingers, her flesh trembled. Behind Damion, chaos lowered his eyes momentarily before taking a hard chance. He knew her husband would not wrap his arms around his love, unsure of course of how to handle this sort of situation. Gently, he took a step foreword; stepping over the small gap between Gaignun and Damion; making sure his shoes wouldn't touch the pile of sticky blood on the ground. Raising his brows, Gaignun's eyes followed chaos as he slowly walked to Faith, making sure she would be fine. She seemed not to notice the approach of her oldest friend, staring down at the cracks in the floorboards as she tried to compute what to say. It was only when the shadow of chaos' small figure overcast her, and his arms wrapped around her frail body did she know he was there. One arm was around her shoulder, while the other was draped across her trembling legs. A few inches of space was between his chest and her side; not wanting to get too close to her with her husband in the room. He wasn't sure whether his movement would be interpreted as an act of love and since kissing her onboard the Elsa he hadn't been so close to her. He had stopped himself from holding her hand or from comforting her but when she had looked into his eyes with that fifteen-year-old expression his heart skipped a beat. They had fallen back in time and this was his responsibility. Not Rubedo's, Damion's and not even Gaignun's. Yeshua was there to protect Faith in concerns with the past. In concerns with what she was. And though he respected Gaignun and the love that they shared, knowing Faith would never fall for the white headed boy again, this was his territory. Nothing would prevent him from protecting her. Even if she was married, pregnant and had her own life he would be at her side. She would always be his concern.

Thankfully to him, she seemed to not be mad at the touch; instead she lifted her head almost confidently, enjoying the warmth of chaos around her. His firm hands were helping her flesh stay still, while she could feel the warmth of Gaignun still flowing through her mind; the assurance of his love. Letting out a long breath, she looked back to Damion, giving another shake of her head. "Look at these people," she whispered, looking at each person in the room to give evidence to what she had said. "Think of Gabriel. They're people you're hurting. They have done nothing, but bringing me down is bringing them down. Fair enough to hurt me for whatever plans you may have but to harm these people too…? These …these lovely people? Even Gaignun you're hurting…You get along with him too… He was your friend and you're hurting him…"

"You allowed them into your life," Damion muttered, causing a stab to Faith's heart from the overwhelming guilt. A sob left the back of her throat as she shook her head, feeling chaos' fingers smoothing over her back. His one hand slipped up to her stomach and the baby underneath, while Gaignun put a hand to his forehead, unsure of what to do with himself. He wanted to care for her, but chaos was doing that… "You allowed these people to be hurt by knowing you. You could have stopped Gaignun getting close to you."

"No," she whimpered, tears finally running down her face. "It's not my fault. It's not me."

"You asked to be a human," he whispered, grinning at her evilly again. "Your selfishness so many, many years ago had planned out the future for these people; in this life as well as every one after that."

"No," Gaignun finally said, standing to his feet as he did as such. Rubedo couldn't help but raise his brows from his younger brother's sudden amount of confidence he would only have while facing a fight with Albedo. "You will never, _ever_ speak to my wife in such a way. How dare you turn all of this upon her? You saw each step she took into fire. You are the reason for the pain she has felt along with our pain. I blamed her mother for all that has happened to her, though I wish I had not. You are a coward, Damion Blanc and even if you return you do not know who you are dealing with. We will fight for Faith for we love her: everyone of us and no matter what powers you possess they mount up to nothing. You _will never harm her again._ And I will spend each of my days making her happier then she has ever been before."

They hadn't left the room; the white headed Yeshua and red headed Faith. She had huddled herself against his figure after having kissed her husband on the lips more then ten minutes ago. Damion's body had failed on him just moments after Gaignun had given his wonderful speech and since the pair had failed to leave Gabriel's bedroom. With the help of Rubedo, Gaignun had carried the body of Damion down the stairs to outside, where they were burying him with as much respect as they could muster in their angered minds. Damion, a man believed to be better then her father Robert had failed her. From even the beginning of her life, everything had been precisely planned out. Gaignun had explained the situation to Faith, who was obviously unable to use her mouth from the amount of shock she was feeling. She wasn't sure whether she felt angered, guilty or anything; her entire mind being nothing but flesh rather then thoughts and feelings like it should have been. She could feel the touch of Yeshua, though it felt as if he wasn't really there; just a distant figure huddled against her. Thinking almost like him, she felt like a teenager again; locked in the morbid decay of her world about her. Gently, chaos sighed before putting his nose against her cheek. He could smell the scent of the makeup powder she wore when she was younger; the lovely smell reminding him of when they were younger. She was nothing but a fifteen year old with fake blonde hair that he didn't even like that much. His mind didn't think before his lips pushed against her flesh; the bottom lip touching the corner of her own. Immediately, her skin tingled as she was clicked back into reality; feeling the kiss he planted upon her. Eyes widening, she parted her lips, finding her voice.

Softly, despite the jolting feeling running through her heart, she whispered; "What are you doing?" which was a little difficult to do, considering his lips were still touching her.

A hand, covered with a silk glove, ran up her neck, causing her to shiver furiously as chaos' eyes shut; drifting into his own world as the hand made its way to her jaw. Too frozen, frightened and shocked of what to do she could only grip his arm; wanting to pull him away. Before she knew it, the wetness of his lips was against her fully; the sweet scent of his cologne in her nostrils; the scent he wore when she was fifteen. A shiver, horrible like the one she felt in the morning shot through her as the thunder crashed loudly outside where Gaignun still was; luckily. After a split second, she pulled her head back; eyes wide as chaos slowly parted his, registering something he had done wrong. His shoulders hunched as she stared at him with shock, unsure of what to do or what to say. "I'm married…" she finally whispered breathlessly, clasping her eyes tight into chaoses. Her hand unconsciously moved from his arm to his own, holding it as the flesh trembled. "I'm pregnant with my husband's child," she reminded him with guilt feathering over her tone. Finally, she leaned her forehead on his, while his fingers grazed over her jaw deftly. The touch was soothing, yes, but not what she should have been feeing. His breath, gentle and soft like a summer's breeze, touched her chin. "We have a special kind of love," she assured him with a cute, adorable smile that he couldn't help but smile back at. "A love unlike relationships. So you need not kiss me because that's not what we're about. You're my best friend. We don't kiss; our love doesn't involve that. Mine and Gaignun's does."

"But Faith…" he whispered almost painfully. "What if I feel the need to kiss you?" and before she knew it, his lips were pushed against hers again; as soft as silk.

_I wish you thought I was the reason you are in the world.  
I wish my smile was your favourite kind of smile,  
I wish the way that I dressed was your favourite kind of style._

I wish you couldn't figure me out,  
But you always wanna know what I was about.  
I wish you'd hold my hand when I was upset,  
I wish you'd never forget the look on my face when we first met.

I wish you had a favourite beauty spot that you loved secretly,  
'Cos it was on a hidden bit that nobody else could see.  
Basically, I wish that you loved me,  
I wish that you needed me,  
I wish that you loved me. I wish that you did. I wish that you loved me.

[Comments:] this is honestly my guiltily favourite pairing; chaos and Faith. It's just a sad a little thing that neither of them can be together but they hold a different love then normal couples do; something like a strong friendship, y'know?


	41. Rearrange What You Have Found

**|| Chapter [Nine] ||**

**Rearrange What You Have Found**

_**{Comments}**_ Just pretend I put chapters "one, two" etc on the other ones, haha! I have to get into the habit of treating Bitter Sweet II as a second piece, rather then a continue of Bitter Sweet. *..* x3

lol my typical Englishness is like … trying to ruin my writing XD I'm so tempted to make the sentences that people say with "don't" rather than "doesn't". like "it don't matter" rather "it doesn't matter" XD It doesn't look right to have them say doesn't like that! Aahhh see, this is why I really want to get my Portal 2 fanfic done because Wheatley's English and he can speak exactly like me, making the whole thing a whole lot easier XD Oh Wheatley, I love you :3

"_Gabriel, I'm stuck," those three words were the most irritating thing he could ever hear. At least once a maths lesson she would turn to him, with her stubborn little face that was red with how much she was trying, and ask him for help. Or state she couldn't do it; either way it was annoying by far. While Emilia was off to work, along with chaos, it was just Gabriel, Faith and Damion left in the lonely house. Since their father had passed Faith hadn't entered a public school once and relied on Damion or Gabriel for her education in home schooling. Neither of them seemed to excited about it; Damion was too busy doing whatever it was he did in the basement (Gabriel had no idea – he just thought the man suffered from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder and needed to keep everything down there neat) and Gabriel was busy with his own education, which was in the form of online classes to allow him to keep his eye on his little sister. And help her if she needed to though after two years of hearing her get stuck in her maths tasks were maddening him. A long sigh escaped the back of his throat as he placed a finger on his temple momentarily to contain his irritation before spinning around on the chair he was sat on. It took him a few moments to find her fifteen-year-old figure, stood at the door of the study on the third floor of the home, clutching the papers along with a pencil in her hands. She looked almost lost in the small room she rarely entered; a place where only Gabriel would study. She spent most of her time in her bedroom to study, never disturbing anyone apart from at times like these. The little one wore just a pair of denim shorts along with a short sleeved orange top with a cartoon upon it; her hair that she was trying to grow back was pulled from her face. A dark thought loomed across his mind for a split second; so quickly he hardly registered that he thought it. He could have taken her then and then if he wanted to. Hell he could have taken her so many years ago. It didn't matter; she had already been stained by that chaos (oh yeah he knew and he had such joy teasing her during their special moments together). She looked stupid standing there, looking lost in the little room. After a few moments of silence, he let out another sigh before his voice became audible to her ears._

"_Show me," he ordered, moving his arm behind his back to turn off the computer screen that could distract her or him._

_As he did, his shoulder popped, causing the man to hiss slightly in pain but it was long forgotten about as he turned back around to face his sister who was slowly taking some steps foreword. He could sense the fear coming from her flesh like he had the nose of a wolf, but the emotion irritated him more then anything as his heart began to twist in a awful fashion. Emotions came from his mind, as they always would do, confusing the twenty-year old as he wondered what he really was thinking. It was always the same, since he had been in the hospital at the age of fifteen; his emotions were never intact and sometimes, when he mustered enough common sense in his brain, he questioned just what he had done to his little sister; whether it was truly him or not. But after thinking such a thing he mentally slapped himself, reminding him that it was her fault he had been in the hospital, which was when the anger grew again. The Demon, soon after the anger started, would get her punishment so it all worked out fine, at least in the eyes of Gabriel. Fighting against emotions that he couldn't quite understand, he held out his large hand for the paper she was stuck on, which she handed to him the moment she could. Quickly, he scanned the sheet before sighing like a growl, which caused Faith to hunch her shoulders dejectedly in fear he would strike her. Carefully, she watched him as he checked over the answers she already put. His large hand reached towards her, but instead of hitting her, he snatched the pencil from her trembling fingers; causing her to stand there, playing with her fingers nervously. Another groan escaped the back of his throat as he wrote something down on the paper._

"_Follow those instructions," he told her, raising a brow as he offered her the papers and pencil. She took them with her shaking left hand, but he tried to ignore her annoying fear, which he thought to be pathetic; he couldn't be bothered with harming her. He was too busy trying to sort out those damn emotions flying in his mind like annoying flies. "You did the calculations wrong in the other answers," he saw her face sink in disappointment. Unconsciously, he reached foreword to squeeze her arm. Faith contained her shock from the almost kind touch he gave her, wishing she could move back and out of the room. "Just follow how to do it and you'll do fine."_

"_T-Thanks," she stuttered over her words directed to her 'teacher', quickly pulling from his touch the moment she could, which felt more then reliving to the little girl. It didn't take her seconds to leave the study, shutting the door deftly behind so Gabriel was engulfed in his supposedly stable silence._

_Sitting back on his chair, he growled out; "Stupid little brat…" before focusing back on the computer and away from those feelings._

Sweet whispers of a gentle breeze blew through the bare trees, causing shadows to dance along the well-walked, dusted path. Crisp morning sun cascaded down from the heavens above, through thin wisps of white, angelic clouds. The sign of the previous day's storm on Second Miltia had long been replaced with a beauty. Birds sung to greet the mornings dawn, ignoring the sharp coldness of the winter's air that seemed so out of tune to the shinning image. Footsteps echoed through the woods single pathway to break the silence that once hung in the air. The couple were arm in arm; the little Faith clinging to her husband as if she were about to collapse to the ground. Her faded multi-toned eyes gazed around wearily; her face frail yet her head pounding fast to deny the weakness she showed on the outside. Slowly but surely they were leaving the devastating house behind them, but only for an hour at the most before one of them grew cold and would need to retreat. A hand, almost twice as big as his lovers, ran through her straightened locks, causing gentle bolts of electricity to flow through the smaller girl's spine.

"I never knew there were such isolated places within Second Miltia," the raven headed Gaignun commented, almost impressed. "And it's so natural…"

"There's nothing artificial where we live," Faith informed him with her sweet voice. "We even plant with seeds," she smiled almost impressed with that. Her eyes began to shine as she looked from left to right, trying to find something deep within the woods. "I can't remember where…But I used to have a flower bed somewhere in an opening…" an irritated groan escaped the back of her throat as their footsteps began to slow. "I wish I could remember."

"You don't need to show me today," he told her softly with a tone of voice only she got to hear. Gently, his fingers ran through her hair once more, before he finally stopped walking. With his fingers buried deep in her lavender smelling locks, he leaned down to kiss her forehead, causing the woman to blush furiously as her little hands clutched his toned arms. "I brought you here for a reason anyway," he whispered before gently touching her forehead once more with his tender lips.

"A reason?" she asked cautiously, wondering whether he knew what chaos had done to her; when he had kissed her twice. She hadn't reacted in kind, of course, but what if Gaignun were to blame her? What if he would leave her? A sickening feeling grew at the pits of her stomach where the baby lay, making her wonder whether her husband would leave her and the child over such a trivial matter that was not her fault. Her feet shuffled against some dead leaves, crunching them under her weight as she looked up at him awkwardly. She wasn't sure whether he could sense her fear or not but he smiled softly at her none the less, sliding a finger of his right hand underneath her chin.

"Yes," he replied, locking eyes with his beautiful emerald ones. "I need to talk to you about yesterday first," he muttered, causing a jolt to run hard through her body; he was going to leave her! No, she couldn't have that; she didn't want that, no, no! Tears grew in her eyes and noticing the liquid, the raven man kissed the side of her face, exactly where chaos had planted his lips the previous day. "Hush," he whispered against her skin. His voice was followed by a moaning of the wind against their bodies. "Me and Rubedo found something on Damion before we buried him," he said, causing butterflies to emerge in her stomach as relief overcame her. Her little body felt a little weak from the relief but she kept herself stood upright; not allowing her emotions to be seen by him. His hand slipped from her head, sliding into the pocket of his blazer Faith had washed for him the previous day. Bringing his hand back out, his fingers clutched an old key, rusted at the edges. Moving her hand off his arm, she took the key from him gently, looking over it.

Amazement overcame her face, causing Gaignun to frown slightly. Rarely had he seen such old fashion keys but he wasn't as amazed as Faith was, staring down at the rusted metal in her white palm. "Damion used to say locks were bad," she smirked with an elevated tone. "Like, even Emilia and Robert did," he had to think for a moment who Robert was, thinking she was talking about the Cannibal when he remembered her fathers name. But a question loomed in his mind; since when did she call him by his first name? "I mean we don't have locks but he carries a key?" she asked rhetorically. "Carried," she corrected quickly.

"Why doesn't your family like locks?" he questioned curiously, looking at her ecstatic face.

"I think it's something religious," she muttered. "Locks show you're hiding something; you're doing something secretively. I have to admit, to find that you have locks in your house kind of shocked me," she smirked, catching his fantastic gems.

"_Our_ house," he reminded her with a quick, playful squeeze of her arm. She smirked.

"Our house," she repeated, before sliding the key into the pocket of her denim jeans. "Looks like we're finding ourselves a lock today. Why did you drag me out here just to give me that?"

"That wasn't the only reason," he smiled at her gently with his thin lips, before taking her right hand in his. "You have my powers in your blood, along with my brothers," he told her, this time as seriously as anything. His voice, just like her personality, could fluctuant so vividly. His eyes had pushed away the playfulness as he spoke to her calmly with importance. "Faith, you need to understand how dangerous they are."

"I do," she said quickly, trying not to remember the damage she had caused to Damion that resulted in his death. Quickly, Gaignun shook his head.

"No, you don't," he told her resolutely yet with concern in his gems. "I need to talk to you about everything you can do now. You couldn't quite possibly understand."

"Yes, I do," she quickly said, frowning as she did. "Stop talking down to me."

"You've not seen what we can do," he told her, pulling his hands away from her as he sensed anger emitting from her skin. "We were built from birth to be ultimate weapons and _you_ contain everything all three of us hold, along with your own powers. You _killed_ Damion with one of my powers. I suppose you don't know how strong that is."

"So _what_?" she questioned, folding her arms firmly across her chest. Taking a step back, she almost slipped on one of the rocks but quickly gained her balance. "We can't _do_ anything about it. It's not like I chose to be this way or have your abilities. It's not like anything bad will happen."

"You're being naive…" he whispered, shaking his head as he placed a hand on his forehead in slight irritation as he fought with himself to figure out how to explain how difficult their situation had become. "Faith …" he couldn't tell her about anything; the Red Dragon (he _prayed_ oh how he prayed she could not do that) or anything and instead sighed.

"I don't care about anything of this," she quickly whispered with such a pained voice his eyes shot to her; to the little one, moving from one foot to another. The feeling of her pain came onto him as he frowned, allowing her to speak. "What makes you think I do? My family is _dead_," she swung her arms down as she yelled the word, turning her hurt into anger; she wouldn't be weak, not weak, not weak. But Gaignun could see past her angered exterior. "And you wanna know the worst bit?" she questioned harshly before tightening her hands into fists. "_I killed them._ Each and _every fucking one_. And you want to talk to me about _your_ powers? I bet you only want to because I'll probably fucking kill _you_ and your baby!" her words caused him to flinch but quickly he shook his head.

"Stop this," he ordered her, before reaching foreword to grab her wrist. With pure strength he pulled her cold body against his own, looking firmly into her eyes. "Stop it _now_," he whispered in a low growl, almost reminding her of Albedo during his own, angered moments. When he finally captured her eyes she could see them trembling in a mixture of emotions he was trying to keep under control. His fingers squeezed tighter around her wrist, yet not painfully; almost proving his touch was upon her. "Why can't you see that you did none of this? I _felt_ something inside of you, Faith," her heart skipped a beat as he brought his face close to hers, to prove his point even more; to keep her listening to him. Slowly she tried to tug from his grip, reminiscing about the time in the Encephalon dive when he had been _so_ irritated to the point he wouldn't stop questioning her so. It was like being a Realian all over again, when during their first meeting she thought he would strike her whenever he went to tenderly touch her. "I'm not mad at you," he whispered, almost reading her thoughts. "I want you to believe me. Just believe me. You haven't for so long and I _need_ you to. You _have_ to trust me, Faith."

A twisted pause drifted between the pair of them before he sighed hard. "We're going home," he said, breaking the silence, which caused her eyes to widen. Before she had a chance to ask what, he explained; "This is not helping you or the baby. I …" a headache, as painful as a butter knife struggling to slice into his skull, shot through him. Immediately, his fingers worked to the temples of his forehead, trying to unwind the pain that was trying to overwhelm his common sense. "I don't know what to do anymore," he finally managed to grind out, causing Faith to slowly take a step back. "I have no answers or resolutions for what is going on. This is so difficult…"

"Are you…" tears began to grow in her eyes as a lump appeared in her throat as the memories of her family leaving her drifted into her mind. A few months ago she had thought of Gaignun doing such a thing, yet they had spent so much time in paradise the memories of what had happened at the beginning of their relationship seemed to disperse into the air; leaving just happiness between the two so the fear had drifted. She almost despised herself for being so weak and relying so much on another human being, when she should have been relying on no one apart from herself. After so much had happened she knew it was wrong to hold trust in people; even the one she was madly in love with. And chaos, well it wasn't shocking to think he'd try to throw her away again. Finally, she managed to let out the other half of her sentence, which had moulded into a pained whisper; "…Going to leave me alone?" clear droplets of water grazed down the sides of her pale face as Gaignun allowed his eyes to drift over her slowly. Quickly she shook her head, reverting back to her defenceless childishness he remembered o-so well. Her hands clasped together over her chest as her eyes began to grow red from the tears falling quickly down her face. "I don't wanna' be alone…"

A sentence drifted into Gaignun's mind as the memory of his older brother entered his vision, over-taking the sight of Faith for but a few moments. _'No, if you die, I wanna die too! Don't leave me alone…'_

"That's what everyone does," Faith whispered, snapping him back from his thoughts. "They give up on me," her voice was breaking, causing Gaignun to breathe inwardly. "You're dirt!" she finally yelled through her tears; her body beginning to tremble. "You're nothing but cowardice _dirt_!" her shaking hands turned into fists; the knuckles becoming as white as sheets as her bottom lip began to tremble. "You'll see!" she yelled once more, her voice breaking even more then it had done as she whispered. A sob escaped the back of her throat as she took a step backwards into the woods. "I'll give you _all_ a reason to leave me alone! And you'll be running from _ME_ rather then the thing instead!" wincing as she felt her heart breaking in thousands of little places, she caught eyes with her beloved husband once more before sobbing loudly as she felt torn between so many things. Without clearly thinking she screamed 'you'll see' before turning and running deep into the woods, leaving him behind.

"Faith!" Gaignun yelled, ignoring the searing headache.

'_You're mad Faith, you're utterly mad. This is just nonsense!'_ he couldn't help but think before darting into the woods, chasing the smaller, weaker girl. The man darted between the trees; his feet crunching on leaves as he followed close at her tail, yet still not close enough to grab her to stop her running. Little did he know about what she was thinking, but he felt bad for what he had said. He never blamed her for anything she did in her life. Eventually, after going so deep in the woods the world became so dark, he stopped in his tracks; watching her bright red hair drift further away. Pushing his back against the trunk of a tree, he shut his eyes firmly before bringing a trembling hand to his forehead. Letting out a pained breath, he allowed the tips of his fingers to glow a vivid shade of emerald, while his other hand wrapped around the hem of his shirt; a feeling of dread overcoming him. The face she had given him kept replaying in his mind; the pain he had felt and seen was unbelievable. He wanted none of this; only a normal, happy life with her, which he was so close to getting if it wasn't for her birthday. He blamed himself wholly for the incidents that had occurred in just a few short days; he took the responsibility for the deaths of those innocent people, along with Damion's and Gabriel's (if he was indeed deemed dead, for he was walking fine just the previous day) along with the hurt his wife was feeling. This was his family he was supposed to be protecting, yet he was the reason for his wife to be hurt so much. He couldn't help but ponder over her sentence of calling him dirt; perhaps it was true that was all he was. _'Stop running Faith,'_ he warned her as he parted his lids to show his sparkling gems. After a few seconds, knowing she wasn't going to comply, he bit his lip before allowing his eyes to flash intensely. A feeling of hatred towards himself shot through him as he saw the small woman freeze in her footsteps. Even through the trees and despite the distance, he could see the glow of his own emerald powers; wrapping around her body to prevent her from moving.

'_Let me go this instant!'_ she yelled through to him mentally as he stood up straight, making his way to her. _'Gaignun!'_ she protested. Lines of emerald shone brighter then the suns rays that tried to peek through the gaps in the trees curiously at the situation. They tightened around the small woman, but gently of course – he would never wish to hurt her. No matter how much she would try, from the grip he had on her body she was paralysed. Just as he came a few feet behind her, she tried to wriggle more; gasping as none of her limbs complied her wishes.

"What are you doing…?" questioned Faith breathlessly as she felt her lungs constrict from her nervousness. Tangled deep in the mist of the situation was a small bit of hope that she held; hope that Dmitri was unable to produce such powers through his son's body. She could feel the brush of his hand along her back between the beams of light he was producing effortlessly. "Gaignun…"

"Stopping you," he whispered gently against her right ear; his lips pushing against her flesh. "You see what I can do? What you can do?"

"If I can do this, why can I not break free?" she asked confidently as if she was the one holding all the cards.

"You don't know how to," he continued to whisper, despite their isolate location deep in the cold woods. "You could kill me, right here and right now. You could kill the baby as well, Faith even if you had these powers or did not. You could, if you wished, kill me without them," he spoke almost alluringly as his fingers ran across her body, almost trying to calm her from the theme of conversation though she felt utterly at lost with his meaning. "The problem is … could you? Do you actually have it in your own heart to turn on me and shed my blood?" he kissed the side of her face, his fingers running between her breasts and landing on her stomach. "Do you think I have it in myself to leave you?" silence landed between them for a moment as he waited patiently for an answer. "Tell me."

"Maybe…" she muttered, wincing as she did. "chaos left me; my family did and I know I'm driving you mad with what's going on."

"I won't lie, it is driving me mad," he told her, causing her heart to skip a beat. "I have no answers or solutions but leaving you alone is not a solution nor is it an answer," slowly, he turned to face her; not letting one of his touches leave her. "I don't know how I see you. I saw you as a best friend, my lover, but now you're just … I can't describe it. I want to say you're my other half but it sounds too cliché, well I imagine everything I'm saying sounds cliché…"

Gently, she giggled. "A little," looking up at him while biting her lip, she smiled sweetly. "Can you let me go now?"

"I need to hear you say it," he told her almost firmly. "Do you think I could leave you?"

"No," she replied honestly, feeling a strange sensation overcome her as the light of his powers instantly disappeared. For a moment she lost balance, falling into his masculine frame. Tenderly, he held her, running fingers through her hair. "Do I bug you?"

"A little," he replied honestly. "When you run away and don't consult me about tearing someone's arm off…"

"Hey, you did it too!" she argued almost innocently, pulling back to look into his emerald gems.

"Yes, to a man that has to ability to regenerate," he reminded her. Faith pouted slightly.

"Well if the nonsense Damion said is true," she began slowly, kicking the dirt as she pulled away from Gaignun's firm grip. "He's still alive and has been for quite a few years, so I doubt –" quickly she tore from her sentence, looking up at Gaignun with horror soaked gems. "Oh my days, what if he turns into a zombie? Where did you bury him? Far from the house? I told you he was Frankenstein!" she clicked her fingers almost proudly like she had got the answer to everything. Gaignun looked at her, unsure of whether to laugh or not.

"_A U.R.T.V?" repeated Gabriel with a soft, quiet tone; the softest he had probably used within his life. The twenty year old leaned foreword on the sofa as he repeated the word or letters, which left a stale taste upon his sour tongue. His arms were folded along his stomach tightly; his chestnut coloured gems gleaming with curiosity as they looked over the man sat opposite him on an identical sofa, which was wine red set with black vintage patterns upon it; Damion Blanc, who held a small paper folder within his hands. In the almost deft living room there was one more figure; young Faith on the same sofa as Gabriel. She was lying upon it, with her little feet covered in white socks that seemed a little too big for her, upon Gabriel's left thigh, just touching his left arm. Her clasped hands provided comfort for her as she leaned her head upon the soft arm of the furniture. Strands of straight blonde hair had escape from her hair, which had been pulled back, to cover her peaceful face as she slept. A blanket with different patches had been placed upon her not too long after she dozed off for an evening nap. Embodied into the fabric, near her face, was her name along with her brothers, which Gabriel found himself looking at more then once. Little purple marks were appearing under her eyes, though no one asked where they had originated from nor did Faith speak of it willingly. Gabriel straightened himself for a moment to pull at his black dress shirt, preventing creases from appearing. In the dark room he glanced again over to Damion who seemed as calm as ever; the mysterious man taking his time to reply to Gabriel's question, if it were indeed that. Twisting his fingers together, Gabriel gave another glance to his younger sister, resisting the urge to brush those stupid locks from her face. He wouldn't allow himself to touch her, only knowing that if she were to awake then it would ruin his conversation with Damion._

_Eventually, the man opposite him spoke with just as soft a voice, making sure not to awake the girl who was the only person in the house save for the two men; "Yes, a U.R.T.V. I told you what they were a few years ago, can you remember?" he questioned softly, making Gabriel nod his head quickly as he reminisced the conversation they had for a few moments. Almost as if Damion knew, he paused to wait for the younger man to give him his full attention before continuing again. "I need you to convince your mother that Faith is safe enough to take on a trip. Use the excuse that it is Faith's birthday; something unsuspicious."_

"_But why?" asked Gabriel softly as he frowned to show his inward confusion he couldn't express with a tone. "And where in the world can we take her? We can't even allow her to go to school anymore from this…"_

"_The Kukai Foundation," Damion replied quite calmly as he leaned back in his seat, toying with the corners of the folder between his palms. "There is an extremely high chance we will meet with Gaignun Kukai."_

"_Isn't he the chairman?" Gabriel scoffed, trying to hold back his laughter to the obscure man. "Oh yes, he will be so excited to meet with us and Faith. Do tell, Damion, how do you plan to meet with Gaignun Kukai and oh yes, do tell, why must we meet with possibly a big headed pompous idiot that possibly only gets joys every Friday night from whores?"_

"_Hold your tongue," Damion sharply countered, glaring at the man, who folded his arms once again across his stomach. Faith shuffled for a moment, catching the attention of Gabriel while Damion began to speak again. "From the lack of something in his life, Gaignun Kukai won't even be able to touch the arm with a woman let alone sleep with her. And we hold that lack of something," slowly, intentionally, his eyes grazed to Faith who had stretched her legs across Gabriel's lap, which he soon covered with the rest of the blanket like a kinder older brother he most defiantly wasn't. Gabriel couldn't help but smirk._

"_She's nothing," he told him quickly, tucking his hands underneath the blanket that was across him as well. "She's not a student, she's not a kid; she's not even a proper human being…" he looked to his little sister before sighing hard. "Where did your life go so wrong?" knowing he'd get no answer, he turned back to Damion._

"_Hush, Gabriel, hush," Damion calmly whispered. "Slowly things will unravel. The meeting of Faith and Gaignun is important to me, and eventually to you. I'm going to go do some work," he stood to his feet, moving to the door that led into the kitchen. For a moment he looked at Faith before smirking. "Yeshua will be home soon, so I wouldn't bother waking her to paint her face even more."_

"_Yeah whatever," growled Gabriel as Damion left the room, shutting the door behind him. Slowly, he turned to Faith before sighing. "Stupid, stupid, stupid girl…"_


	42. Goodbye Notes

**{Chapter Ten}** Goodbye Notes

**{Comments}** This is a letter; the normal writing is the actual writing on the letter, while writing with italics and in a bracket {_such as this_} are the thoughts of Faith, while italics and bold _**like this**_ are things scribbled out, but just about able to be seen; I can't do strikeouts on FFnet. This is short, yes, but hopefully it'll mean something but you never know. There's swearing btw so don't have the swear thingy on XD

{_Can I do this? Fuck…I can …Have to…shit I feel fucking sick…_}

_**Gaignun**_

_**Hey**_

_**Dear Gaignun,**_

I hate letters and you know I do. I hope you slept well. I'm sorry I haven't made you a cup of coffee {_I should really put one there with this but it'll be cold knowing my damn luck…I owe him coffee. And breakfast. Oh my I'm horrible for not doing breakfast…No, I'll do him something …_}. _**Chaos can make you one.**_

I'm an awful person aren't I? I don't know how to word this or whether I should. You know I love you right? That's the problem though. I love you so much and it's ruining everything. If you never met me you wouldn't be hurt. {_Maybe still a virgin, but that's alright cause you're adorable…_} Damion was right. I am selfish. I kept you for myself, hoped for a good life with you and what did you get? Fuck all. I've ruined your fucking life, and I put your career on the damn line and why? Because I'm a selfish bitch that's why. Go home and live your life. Just go home, please. I know you love me but I need to leave you alone so you can live.

_{Horrible, horrible, horrible…I hate me…I hate me so much…}_

I love everything; I love the view from your roof of the stars in the night sky and I love the music we play. I love girls acting like guys and people that smile never, ever; I love how you don't smile at me but your eyes flash so brightly they're like lights. I love packaging in the Foundation, rather than the packaging on Second Miltia. I love you but I hate that I love you. I hate dripping taps and I hate when my hands are cold but I love it all the same. I don't even love that I love you; I simply hate that I do because it's ruining your life. Gaignun…I don't know what to do anymore. I want you to be happy, and dragging you down with me isn't going to do that.

There's nothing here that can help either of us so I've left. Don't ask _**Yeshua**_chaoswhere I am – he won't know _{he knows I've gone – hell he's agreed to help but doesn't know where}_. I haven't touched your money – I only took the bit I earned waitressing; the rest is yours I promise. I swear. I wouldn't take it. You always talk about sharing but that's yours.

Damion said we knew each other in another life. I bet we were lovers. I bet we had the perfect like and we had a little white picket fence or we lived by the ocean in France, because you know I can speak that. I bet we had tons of kids. I bet you were called _**Nigredo – Noir - **_… Right, I don't know, but I bet you might've been called Gaignun. I bet I was called just Fay; not Faith. I bet we had kids. Tons of them. One called Eliana; one Inez and maybe a couple of boys. I bet we had twins. And a dog. I really want a dog. And a cat! And some fish, I really want some of them…Why couldn't we have them now…? Or maybe we just had pets. Maybe Gabriel grew up to be really smart, because I know he can do that in this life. We'd be proper jealous of his kids. They'd have been bilingual. He'd have had two and they'd have come round to play with the cats and I've have made lemonade and you'd always think; 'She'd be great as a mother' but we never had kids. We didn't really feel a proper want for them. Gabriel's wife would be blonde. She'd be from Russia or something and super model beautiful and I'd have been the bridesmaid for their wedding and you'd have been the best man, because in that life we'd have been really close. I'd have met you when I was younger. Maybe even school sweethearts that took it really slow. I bet I'd be even more nervous at sex then I am now _{That's another thing I disappoint him with so badly…I get so scared…So…}_ but it would be good later on. We'd have a little life. I'd be chef – I never bothered with college, but you'd be like an accountant. Or a manager. Or even a chairman back then. Rubedo would be grown up. Me and Albedo would be best friends. He'd be feminine, I know it. Albedo would take me shopping and help me do my hair while I'd be getting ready for a date with you. I bet I'd have been in Albedo's class and then he introduced me to you. And then we kicked it off. He'd have never really liked Gabriel, but he'd get on for families sake. Rubedo would be happy with his own relationships, and Albedo really wouldn't be mad. He'd be my best friend, alongside you and we'd drink wine, and he'd look after our cats whenever we went to different places in Europe – see, I figure we'd have been living on the original Earth if it were that long ago.

Oh and Albedo would really like candy. He'd be so smart – I bet he'd be a translator and work in the United Nations – I think that's what it's called. Well, if he got that well. Or he'd be a hairdresser. He'd live with us some weeks if he ever had it hard and he'd have a room right on the end of the hallway and he'd sing a lot. Maybe he'd sing Placebo songs or maybe he'd be all subtle. He'd still love his classical music. I bet he'd know how to play the piano and when he got his own place he'd have one. I bet it'd be the only piece of furniture and he'd sleep with the keys! I bet he'd be awesomely silly at school too. He'd flick pencils and be bored all the time but he'd be really popular!

_{Why can't we live like this now? Why are things so complicated? It's not fair; it's not fair at all. I can't stand it. I hate this. I want this all now – I want the cats and the happy, quiet life where we're smiling…}_

My hair would be brown. I figure that 'cause I think the hair colours kinda boring. Or if that angel gobble-de-gook is real then it'd still be pink and red, though I bet more pink then it is now. _**When I come back can we have that? I want that so badly – a normal home and life.**_

We'd stare at the sky for ages with a telescope. We'd get so fucking wasted on a Saturday night because you wouldn't have to work on Sunday at a laptop. _**We'd be so out of it that we'd barely remember doing it like rabbits. I know, crude, but true.**_ We'd drink shots; coke with vodka and eat Chinese food on the way home. We'd get drunk in the house and dance to all sorts of tunes. We'd watch movies till it was sunrise. _**We'd both know our mothers.**_

Don't you think that would be lovely? God, I love you so damn much it hurts. But I know I annoy you. I know that because of what's going around us is affecting everything. I will come back; I'm not leaving you forever so please, oh wow, please still love me; please don't hate me but I don't want to pull you down even more than you have been. You need to go back home to the Foundation and carry on with your status. I'll be safe, I promise and I'll stay far from Albedo and I'll keep the baby safe. _**It's a boy by the way… and I want to name him after you…**_

_{I bet if I were fucking dead this would be better for you. All the things I've done – all the pain I've caused yet I wish for a life with him…Why? Why am I like this? Why can't I be perfect for him and …Why … just why have I dragged him down so much…?}_

This isn't goodbye or me breaking up with you, though I bet you'll want to with me for what I'm doing or done. But I want you to have a break. I'll figure this all out; see I know Gabriel's alive. I know he is; he's my brother and I know he's around. Promise. I'm gonna find him, right? I still have that key you gave me. I have the keys to home. I know how to get there. I'll be there. Don't hate me. Please. Please don't hate me…

_{Man I've got shaky writing…One…Two…Three…}_

I'll bring you back some brownies! _**If I have enough money**_. You just…just go home, please. Go take Rubedo and chaos home and let the Elsa carry on with their business. I'll get this done and I'll sort it out, I promise you that. I really, really do.

There's a present for you on my desk. Gaignun, I love you so much. I'm sorry I caused so much hassle over the past year. When I come back it'll be different. I swear. _**Don't come looking for me. Please. **__{He won't even bother. He'll hate me now for running away if he doesn't hate me already…}_

Thank you for caring me. For giving me a home. For those clothes when we first met. For taking me away from Albedo. For letting me go in that Encephalon dive _{I bet none of this shit would have happened though if we had done that…More reason to dislike Momo for me…}_. You did so much for me and I repaid you with this. Well, like I said before I'll make it better. You can count on me!

Just enjoy your life! _**Don't sleep around. Don't cheat on me otherwise you won't have any manliness on you.**_

Forgive me. I love you. I love you so much.

Fay Kukai.

_**I don't want to hurt people. I don't want to kill people. Why did you marry me? Why do you love me? A disgusting human such as myself? Why did I let you marry me…? Damion is right…I should crawl in a hole…Die…But death is a pleasure to those.**_

_{Shit, I nearly got blood on this…God, what am I doing to myself…? I feel like broken glass today. But no, it'll all be better; everything will be fine.}_

**{Comments}** Faith isn't the type of girl to run away from any given situation, so I hope this doesn't come across that way. It's just a small opening to the struggles running through her mind; how the guilt is pounding so hard in her brain she can't even think straight, which should be more evident in further chapters. I don't want moments in here where they hug and kiss because this would affect people (trust me, I know – when you feel guilt so badly, even years later it floods onto you like nothing else – self hatred follows it, no matter how strong a person you are – guilt ruins so much – it changes so much). I'd have left. I've left people before – I left my mother when I did something awful I still feel guilt for, because she'd have been better off without me. I still believe that two years on. My father would have been better without me, though I'm all he's got. Faith doesn't want to upset Gaignun or leave him or ruin the small bit of relationship they already have but she feels the need to. It'll be better soon ^^


	43. I Want To Hurt

**{ ****chapter eleven**** } **I Want To Hurt

Love is hate. Love is hurt. Love is everything. There's never any fairytale ending with love that comes without pain or sacrifice. Even the most wonderful things have something horrible about them, yet it's so wonderful you forget all about the horribleness and fight forever for the lovely stuff.

The soft, sweet smelling body of Gaignun firmly wrapped around small, delicate Faith protectively; shielding her from the darkness of the room with the help of the fresh sheets she had put on the bed earlier in the evening. Little did the raven headed husband know this would be the final time touching his beloved wife, who was his entire world yet more, for a rather lengthy time. His large, heated hands ran across her bare body; the tips of his fingers grazing over thick scars that were hard and dry; a few of them with so many lines upon the scarred flesh that it felt like a worms skin, yet none of it disgusted him. The marks were from so many items; razors blades (which left the most darker, almost purple mixed with red scars where sometimes he could see thin purple veins on the thick flesh that had once been torn), knives and so many other items he couldn't even bare to think about. One scar, which was upon her knee, had been created from a piece of barbed wire and the thought of his lover in such pain once had caused him to weep in her arms, which was so unlike stern Gaignun Kukai. The incident, which happened onboard the Durandal, just weeks after knowing her, shocked him far more than it did her. It hadn't been his first time shedding salty water; the first had been in the government offices on the Foundation, just a day after Faith's attendance to the hospital, but it had been one of the greatest. He wept for what seemed like hours; their bare bodies pushed against each other without any lustful motives; only motives to wish to be in peace with one another. But, a year on his view on them had changed greatly; each scar was one he was almost proud of for her; for getting past such pain. He himself, of course, had his own 'fair share' of scars upon his body that sometimes Faith played with using her little cold fingers but she didn't like listening to the stories of how he obtained them as a simple child.

In the darkness, he whispered with a soothing voice; "Are you awake?"

Gently, she stirred; pushing her body against his momentarily as she arched her back, before lying firmly back onto the mattress. She leaned her head onto her right arm; her legs wrapped around his. "No," replied she sleepily with a quieter voice; "I'm still fast asleep…" she tucked her arm deeper under the sheets, though in the darkness Gaignun wouldn't be able to see the bloodied bandaged wrapped around her arm, which had almost been the reason for blood to drip onto the note.

Smirking, he kissed her cheek softly; "What a shame then. I suppose I will let you rest," and then he leaned to her ear, whispering (he acted as if chaos and Rubedo, who were fast asleep, could hear them) teasingly; "Or I could wake you up with a lovely surprise."

Smiling with a blush on her face, she pushed against him again; wrapping her arms around his firm body; "Tonight's going to be all about you and nothing about me," if anything she wanted him to remember this night forever (though she wouldn't be gone forever). She wanted him to know how much she loved him; she wanted him so pleased he wouldn't even think of going to another woman during her absence; she even wanted him so exhausted so that when she would climb over his body to get out of the bed, grab the bag from under her bed and leave the house with chaos that he would be so deep in sleep he wouldn't even notice. She wanted to love him for what she prayed would never, ever be the last time.

* * *

"_Are my lips too red?" softly Faith asked her fiancé, yet with worry shattering her tone that he picked up on instantly, causing him to turn back from his wardrobe wearing just a pair of black boxers. For a second he eyed her at the dressing table; her little body covered in a silk white dress, where the fabric flowed from her body like waves of the ocean. Wrapped around her legs were dull pink tights, with prints upon them that looked like faded swans but he didn't know what they were. Her fingers, which were nearly covered by her long sleeves, were holding a tub of lipstick; the colour vividly red and identical to her lips, which reminded him of fresh blood. Her multi-shaded hair was pulled back from her head, leaving some curls to stick to her face, while a white rose had been clipped on the side of her head. Blinking, she waited as he looked over her appearance, which made him think she looked adorable rather than glamorous like most of the women would be that night at the dinner party he was the main guest of._

_Eventually he shook with a smile; "Not at all. You look beautiful."_

"_I don't feel beautiful," she told him openly while lowering her shoulders dejectedly. Placing the lipstick back on the table, she sighed hard as she looked at her face; seeing imperfections that Gaignun couldn't. "That's a big word to use; beautiful," she began to rant as he went over to the wardrobe to grab clothes yet he listened to every one of her words, sometimes eying her in the mirror. "The women where we're going are beautiful. Smart too. I'm just a waitress, hardly a good thing for you to be proud of…"_

"_What in the world do you mean?" asked Gaignun with confusion welling his gut. He slipped a silk, black, dress shirt on; buttoning it up quickly as he turned to face her properly. At the dressing table, all she could do was fiddle with the makeup, wishing to add more to her face._

"_You're like…" she began slowly; wanting to word her sentence correctly. Her voice was low, almost secretive as her thoughts came out of her that she had kept locked away for so long without him knowing. "The most important man here. You either shouldn't have a fiancé, or someone that's brilliant in something too. Not someone that …" she paused for a moment before shaking her head, unwilling to continue. For a moment Gaignun frowned at her but moved to her side; smelling to sweet scent of vanilla emitting from her. He placed a large, comforting hand upon her shoulder; rubbing her flesh through the fabric._

"_You don't need to come," he told her with a soft voice, unsure of how to act in the situation. "But I'd like for you to. Faith, who have I proposed to? Those fake women, or you?" biting her lip, she only lowered her head but Gaignun knew her answer. "I love you and if anyone thinks bad about you I won't let them forget it," he kissed the side of her face gently, oblivious to the real pain inside of his fiancé's heart. Eventually, she placed a hand on his arm; reaching up to kiss his cheek, which landed a bright red imprint on his face of her lips, causing her to giggle cutely._

"_Can we go late?" asked she softly while biting her lip. Grinning, he placed his other hand on her shoulder as he moved in the gap between her and the dressing table. Without a moment's hesitation, he landed his lips upon hers as tenderly as possible._

'_I don't see why not,' he passed through their mental link._

* * *

Faith's stomach lurched the moment the tips of her fingers touched the rough material of the backpack underneath the bed where Gaignun was resting soundlessly. Instantly, she felt sick as tears began to betray her by dripping down her cheeks with every blink she took. For a moment, in the pitch black bedroom, she considered keeping her eyes wide open yet they gathered at the bottom of her lids to prevent her from seeing at all, which was then followed by a stinging sensation causing her to blink furiously again. Sniffing, she wrapped a shaking hand around the black strap of the bag, sliding it as quietly as she could across the floorboards. She winced a few times as it made a few noises, but soon it was out in the open of her bedroom; waiting to be picked up but all she could do was stare at it like it were a monster. Her heart was pounding in the most peculiar way it had done before. She figured that was how a broken heart truly felt as it tried, in vain, to pump blood around her body, which shivered like a leaf in a storm. Standing to her feet, she left the backpack where it was, in the centre of the room, before moving quietly over to her wardrobe. For the entire time she kept her eyes on Gaignun; her beautiful, beautiful, kind Gaignun who was just inches away from the letter she had placed on her pillow. As she opened the wardrobe door, it creaked; betraying Faith's wishes to keep quiet. Snapping her head to Gaignun, she felt a breath catching in the back of her throat as she saw his figure in the darkness make no movement to the noise. Biting her lip, a little bit of relief came to her, which allowed her to look back into the wardrobe. With shaking hands, she let go of the wardrobe door; sending her hand into the darkness of the wardrobe; almost fearing the doors would slam shut and trap her where she was to prevent her from running away to find her brother. But luckily, as she grabbed a pair of dark blue jeans, a red undershirt with a picture of a cartoon owl upon it and a red and a knitted black and white stripped jumper, which was a few sizes too big for her, the wardrobe let her carry on with her business. When she pulled out the clothes, leaving their coat hangers, she shut the door deftly. Quickly, she changed into the clothes and moved over to the desk. Opening her makeup bag, she pulled out a tub of red lipstick and skilfully painted her lips in the dark. Placing it back down as silently as possible, her hand grazed over the laptop Gaignun's fingers had touched more then they had touched her. Parting her ruby lips, she stared emotionlessly at the other items; the music box, the toys and just everything yet she didn't think as she stared; it almost was if her mind turned off. When she dipped back into reality momentarily, she moved over to the centre of the bedroom, grabbed the bag as the sickening feeling grew even more where the baby was, and turned to her husband. Her pale, weary face watched him for a few moments before she slowly reached down. As tenderly as possible, she kissed the side of his sheet; planting a mark on his face from her lipstick.

As quietly as possible, she whispered to him; "I'll be a better person for you," she ran her fingers through his soft hair, smiling slightly as he stirred from the touch. "I love you," she whispered as she moved to pull the sheets tighter around his body.

Walking away was the hardest part; it was like they were a pair of magnets, causing Faith's body to be weak. It almost took five minutes before she was at her bedroom door; her eyes not having left him. A sob crawled up the back of her throat, yet she held onto it as she opened the door. Biting her lip, she wasted no time to leave the bedroom; shutting the door as quietly as she could behind herself. As she walked down the stairs in the dark home, she wanted to cry; she wanted to scream at herself, and hate herself for the rest of her life for what she was doing. In the back of her mind she kept assuring herself she wasn't hurting Gaignun; that he would be too upset from her presence to even be hurt. For a moment she thought he would even be happy, but didn't think of that for too long as it almost blew her brain thinking her husband would rather be without her. A dizzying sensation came over her as she came off the last step; face to face with the door that would allow her to go outside. Putting her shaking hand on the doorknob, she stared for long moments; her insides feeling as if they were tearing apart in the most painful manner.

"Faith?" the voice caused her to jump out of her skin when it entered her mind. Holding back a gasp to keep as quiet as possible, she shot her eyes to the hall where it had come from. Stood there was chaos in his sleepwear, with a concerned look upon his face. Biting her lip, she looked down at his hands which held a small bag. "Your things…" he could only tell her, stepping foreword a few steps. Quickly, she took them from him.

Smiling strangely, she bit the corner of her lip. Letting out a little airy laugh; her weary, yet distant, almost dreamy eyes looked deeply into his; "Fine, fine, fine," was all she said to him before opening the front door and swiftly leaving the house emotionlessly. She didn't know how she felt as she drifted out into the cold, early morning air. Everything was going to be fine, so she felt rather happy about that. She pushed out the thoughts of her husband, forgot about the child in her womb, because she needed no distractions. Looking into the plastic bag chaos had given her, she noted the box of hair dye, eye colourants and pills for the child (pills that even if she didn't eat well, or even if she drunk then he would still be fine. She hadn't a clue how it worked, but at least all she had to do was take a pill for him, and destroy herself).

Through the haze of awakening in the morning, all Gaignun could do for a few moments was reach foreword with his bare, toned, arms, across the bed that held only him yet he didn't know at that moment in time. As he pushed his arms out into the empty space in front of him, he felt something strange scrap across his forearm, causing him to push his way out of slumber a little bit too soon. With slightly blurred vision, he clambered out of his mind to push himself up a little; his emerald gems bright even during the first moments he was awake in the morning. Crisp light danced through the room from the open curtains, allowing him to be able to clearly see the empty side of the bed, followed by the slightly crumpled up, folded, piece of paper. A feeling, something he couldn't quite put his finger upon though it felt like horror mixed with dread, overcame him as his heart began to pump quickly. The morning haze snapped from his mind as he stared at the paper for a few moments. So many thoughts tumbled around his mind that he couldn't even think of anything, but could only stare at the paper resting ominously on her soft pillow. Eventually, he reached foreword and took the letter in his large hands. For a moment the words were blurred to his vision, but eventually he managed to read the words, including the ones she had scribbled out (yet not so well). His breathing increased as he came to just halfway; his eyes trembling as he inhaled the words; the thoughts and the feelings he had no idea his wife held. Something constricted around his chest as his arms began to tremble. Somehow, he managed to stop tears even appearing in his eyes as he came to the final words. 'Okay, okay…' he whispered with a shaking voice as he folded the letter back up. Everything trembled; his tone, his arms to his fingers to even his toes. Even his heart was quivering like it never had done before but still he couldn't think straight but could only try to keep a hold of his emotions, as he did every moment of every day. Pushing himself out of the bed, he grabbed his phone, dialling her number as soon as he could. As he did, he put it on loudspeaker so he could get changed without wasting any time.

Pulling some clothes out from the wardrobe, he heard the words; "Hello, your call cannot be take at the moment, so please leave a message after the tone," causing his heart to well so much it felt as if it might explode from his chest.

"Okay," was all he could say as he reached to hang up the phone; completely forgetting about the 'gift' Faith had placed on his desk. He slipped on his trousers, missing once or twice, before buttoning up his shirt. He left the top button, obviously not caring for such a trivial matter. Quickly, he grabbed the phone along with the note and his blazer, moving with his body feeling like it were made from jelly, downstairs. He tried to steady his breathing as he walked into the kitchen, trying to push away the tears and the sickening feeling that grew in his stomach like nothing he had felt before. When he entered the kitchen the first person his emerald eyes saw was chaos; stood at the counter with a cup of tea in his hands. There was something odd about his aura as he stood there placidly, which Gaignun immediately picked up on.

'_Don't ask chaos where I am,'_ – he knew. That child knew where his wife and his son were! Suddenly a foreign feeling of sheer anger came to him as he locked eyes with chaos. In the corner of his vision he could see a sleepy, obviously Rubedo, enter as well but Gaignun cared not for him.

"Where is she?" he questioned the white headed boy with anger encasing his tone. Sensing a feeling of confusion come from his younger brother, he threw the note Faith had wrote to him; the younger looking man grabbing it with ease. With a perplexed expression, Rubedo stared at it for a few seconds before unfolding it to read the letters inside. In reply to Gaignun's question, chaos could only shake his head, making the man fumble with his phone.

"She said she wanted to make things better," he explained to him as calmly as possible, but the calamity of his tone only angered Gaignun even more, though he tried his hardest to hold the feeling back. For a moment chaos broke their eye contact as he placed the cup of tea down. "I couldn't do anything to deny her wishes."

"Deny her wishes?" repeated Gaignun with distaste in his tone. "You allowed my _wife_ to leave during the night to goodness knows where for how long? Even _she _doesn't know how long she'll be gone. My _wife_ and my _son_. Did you know that? Did you know that she is barely three months pregnant?"

Rubedo's eyes widened from the statement, which caused him to look up from the note he was still reading (unlike Gaignun he struggled to read the scribbled out parts). He parted his lips to speak, though chaos spoke over him; "Yes, I knew," he told him calmly.

"Ah!" Rubedo quickly piped in, trying to get attention though neither of them even looked at him. "I didn't know she was pregnant! Why did everyone else know?"

Gaignun ignored, or simply hadn't heard his comment and continued to speak with a more frustrated tone; "Then why did you allow her to leave?" he questioned as his body began to tremble from either shock or anger, or even both. "That's my _life_! She is my _entire_ life and you allowed her to walk out! You even _helped_ her."

"I hadn't helped her," chaos countered as calmly as possible still. "I only gave her items she wished for and made sure she knew where she was going."

Rubedo stayed quiet; not wanting to argue with one of his close friends or his younger brother. Gaignun could only stare hard at the white headed boy, trying to bottle up his sheer anger before muttering; "You are relieved of your duties," which caused his older brother's eyes to widen in shock as if he was the one being told such a thing.

"What?" he yelled at his younger brother, taking a step foreword. As if chaos had yelled the question, Gaignun looked to him again but far firmer then before.

"You're relieved of your duties onboard the Elsa," he told him with a normal voice, yet the sternest one either of them had heard. "You're banned from ever stepping foot on it. Jr will give you your things later on today."

"What?" repeated Rubedo as he glared stubbornly at his older brother. "You can't do this! Gaignun, that's up to the Captain!"

"It's up to _me_," he growled at him; ignoring the fact he was the youngest. Slowly, he turned to chaos again with a face welling with hurtful anger. "Leave. I don't ever want to see you again."

"Master Ga-"

"_Leave_!" he yelled so hard both of them flinched slightly but Rubedo's confused glare stayed on his face as he questioned whether to be mad at his brother or not. Never had he seen him in such a way before but he had to admit that even the most calm of people would be affected by such a thing. Compared to how Rubedo would take it, Gaignun was being composed. Unable to reply, chaos did as he told; retreating to the bedroom.

"I need to find her," Gaignun told Rubedo quickly. "You …Go back; do my work for me."

* * *

"_I want to remember!" she screamed at Gaignun so hard her throat was tearing. Wearing just her underwear along with one of his dress shirts, she walked around like a caged animal; agony mixed with determination spiralling through her sharp eyes. "I want to hurt!" with pure distress, she shoved her tiny hands in her curled locks; tugging at her hair yet not hard enough to pull any of it out. Her eyeliner had smudged, while lines from her black mascara were down her damp face. She hadn't slept in days, and he could tell; grey bags had appeared under her eyes and she looked far unhealthier compared to the last time he had seen her. For those days he had been away on business, leaving her to spend her time in their home at the Foundation, which he assumed she would be content with; he knew she didn't like travelling too much with him, especially when it involved meeting so many people. "There's voices," she quickly poked her head, walking from place to place as Gaignun watched her from just a few feet away; unsure of what to do. A cool breeze drifted across their bodies as cars drove past them in the night. He had found her out there, in the darkness of the night; walking to no where at all near their private beach. She was a state; shivering in the cold yet not caring at all. Something about her pained eyes seemed distant; seemed so un-Faith it was unbelievable. He felt as if he were looking at a stranger, rather then the face of his beloved fiancé. "Talking in my head," she continued, letting out a loud sob as more tears began to run down her face. "Talking in my head…"_

_Wincing, Gaignun took a moment before softly asking her; "What voices?"_

"_Those voices!" she screamed suddenly, yet he did not flinch. Angered, she looked at him; "Gabriel and Damion! They come in patches; not properly. Memories and thoughts and fucking feelings! It's all the fucking same. I'm fucking hungry for answers!" she scrunched her hands into tight fists, before hitting her arms to take out all the rage upon herself. The long sleeves of Gaignun's shirt fell over her whitening knuckles, almost softening the blows. "I'm sick of this! Everyday it's the fucking same. Everyday I'm hungry," she sobbed once more as she took a step back and then foreword, before a few more back again; her feet drawing close to the road where the cars still sped by. The only way he could describe how she acted was manic; something he had never seen before in his life. "I want to remember. I want to fucking hurt! I'm not scared! I'm not scared, I'm not scared, I'm not scared, I'm not scared!" she yelled louder this time; her throat literally tearing from her screams. "Come on!" she looked at Gaignun with her piercing eyes. Again, she hit her arms; oblivious to the pain and screamed again with sheer hurt; "Come on! Hurt me and make me remember! Come on!"_

_Then, she collapsed so suddenly Gaignun only had time to grab her when her knees hit the concrete ground. When she awoke the next day, it took him more then a week to get her to speak again though neither of them spoke of when he found her trailing the streets of the Foundation, looking for her memories._

* * *

Fay couldn't think of how she got there. She couldn't remember the before, nor did she know the after. Sitting at the table in the small hotel room, with her curls flowing down her back in a shade of pure raven, just like her husbands, she remembered a math question Gabriel had given her;

_Train A is travelling at 200 mph. Train B is travelling at 135 mph. If Train A left the station at 10:30am, and Train B, going to opposite direction, left at 11am, how long did it take for them to crash?_

She wished she was a number because even then numbers could always work out.

Numbers turned into other numbers and they grew. They had a place, unlike little Fay who had been travelling for goodness knew how long.

If she could tell someone she was a number she would be happier, rather than telling people she was 'Faith Kukai'. Names had bad things attached to them. With Faith she would always be that red headed girl that murdered so many people. With Kukai she would be the woman who disappointed her husband in every which way; who embarrassed him during important meetings or dinners.

Her fingers wrapped around the clear, glass, bottle of vodka in her hands, which was half full. Quickly, she took another mouthful of it; the horrible liquid tasting of just nothingness to her lips. She couldn't remember buying the drink. She couldn't remember checking into the hotel or dying her hair. She couldn't remember where she had gotten the dye from. All she could remember was the question Gabriel had asked her.

Trains crash. People crash. Love fucking crashes but numbers always stay where they are. That's all she cared about; those numbers. So she spent the rest of her lonely evening gulping down the vodka and wondering what number she should be. She couldn't wait to get rid of all those crashes though because everything would soon be fine, fine, fine.

**{Comments:}** I don't like this chapter but I have a killer headache so I really don't want to re-write it XD I wasn't sure whether to make Gaignun more mad or whatever but I found it really, really hard to write him. Faith's turning into a bundle of fun though x) Haha yeah, anyway, try to enjoy and I'll make a better chapter soon; I promise.


	44. Fall Apart In Parts

**{Chapter Twelve}** Fall Apart In Parts

**{Comments}** _Wow_! I got to _200K_ words!~ Squee, I'm so happy, happy, happy~ (': thank you all so, so much for reviewing and messaging me and helping me with this fic, because I never thought I'd do so many words (': You're all so wow, lovely, lovely, lovely~ My daddy got a new kitty cat as well, called Mistah Kitty and he's so small and tiny and so lovely and he bounces when he walks and it's adorable (': Oh!~ & I might be not-updating until after my seventeenth (': [Hehe a person told me yesterday I look twelve so yeah XD Pointless birthday lol] + I found out there's Beyond Good and Evil in HD so I'll be off the computer for awhile...hehe!~ Anyway! Thank you, thank you, thank you ^_^' xoxo  
I'm still peeved with Gaignun's character 'cause I haven't really much of an idea how to write him. Oh and and there's not much speach here DX and and there was something else I was meant to tell everyone about but i forgot O.o" I'll put it on my profile or somert. I think its a link O.O I 'unno XD sorry! Dx

_Who am I now without your love?  
Who am I alone in a day that has gone?  
Without your love to return upon,  
I'm a featherless bird in a sky so absurd  
Why oh why's there so much movement  
When all I long for_ _is to lay down in love's pause  
And dream I know something of truth  
Oh hide me deeper in your peace further  
And lose me in this greed I've found in your need_

When Faith awoke, the next morning or the next day (she hadn't the faintest of ideas) all that overcame her was the most painful of headaches she had ever experienced in her young life. Stretching in soft fabrics wrapped loosely around her body, she frowned; automatically reaching out for her husband who was miles away from her at that time yet, being so lost in a morning daze, she knew nothing of it. All she knew was the peculiar feeling of the light bed, which held only one person rather than two. Despite the fact she had spent most of her life sleeping alone, she had grown so accustom to feeling another body with her that it was all too strange to endure. The frown on her little face, which was still blotchy with bright red marks from her pregnancy, deepened as her thin arms seeped more into the cool, foreign, bed sheets. Just as she was about to turn to her side, rather then lay on her back, the bandage wrapped around her right wrist, which covered her self-inflicted cut upon her flesh, snagged with the pillow somehow. As the reddened bandage was jolted from her flesh momentarily, the line of blood that had dried from the thick cut against the rough fabric unhooked from her flesh; opening the wound once more with a painful shot running from her arm, up to her shoulder.

Immediately, she snapped from her morning haze as the pain overtook her senses; causing her to cry out in the once silent bedroom. The loose sheets fell from her body, which was covered in nothing but a pair of cream underwear along with a light blue cami, where the straps were so lose they fell down her arms the moment she sat up. The long, curled locks fell to her side, but she didn't notice their colour as she quickly rearranged her bandage to make sure a clean patch was against the seeping wound, which caused a burning sensation to draw over her arm, which she found herself liking morbidly. To feel that pain was almost a relief to her mind, which was quite happily accepting any punishments; even ones she inflicted upon herself. Lifting her dazed head, she glanced around the bedroom in her small, double room in the hotel (double room if she remembered correctly though she could hardly remember checking in – she hadn't a clue where she was within Second Miltia but she assumed she hadn't travelled very far). The walls were a pristine white shade, while the bed was exactly the same. A bed side table was to her left and on top of it were two bottles; the one made from plastic, which were the baby's pills, and one made from glass; a third full with vodka. Light seeped through the window, where the thin curtains were just open partly to allow some crisp autumn light through. Despite the light, there was a pitter patter of the rain against the glass panes; telling Faith of the miserable weather outside. Groaning, she pushed away the pain of the headache before moving across the bed; her body still struggling to listen to her mind from the alcohol. Trembling, she reached out for the bottle of pills.

Unscrewing the cap, she placed it on the crumpled sheets and took out a red and white pill. Lifting it to her eyes, she stared at the medical item for a few long moments, before gazing back to the bottle, which was almost full, save for the one she took the previous day and the one she held in her right hand index finger and thumb. Pulling her lips to tug underneath her teeth, she numbly looked at them; her mind pushing thoughts and feelings into her brain slowly yet surely. A tear rolled down her cheek as she realised her naïve, yet horrific thoughts she had for a moment. There were enough pills in there to kill her, if she took the rest of the vodka in the bottle with it and if she wanted to, she could have always ran herself a bath or grabbed a plastic bag and she was sure there were some headache pills in her bag. The tear ran across her dark rings under her eyes; over the old, dried tears, which were black from her mascara before dripping onto her stomach, where the baby lay. She, of course, could not die. She had proved it before with her last overdose in the hospital that she could just barely remember; another memory that came in shots of thoughts and feelings. She had proved it when she had sliced the inside of her arm up; proved it when she had lost so much blood in the 'care' of Albedo.

But the child within her; he could die or so she believed. For that fleetingly selfish moment, she had forgotten of the child inside of her; wanting to kill herself with the pill that would keep the baby as healthy as possible and clear its blood from the toxins she was swallowing. Suddenly, she slammed the plastic bottle upon her shin as the tears ran down her cheeks like her eyes themselves were taps. When the pain proved not to be enough, she slammed the bottle again against the same place; crying out this time as the pain ran down to her foot and up to her thigh; spraying red and white coloured pills across her body along with the bed. Shutting her eyes tightly, though the tears still wriggled their way between her eye lids, she dropped the bottle before shoving the pill she still held with a sweating hand into her mouth. Without looking, she let her hand fly about in the air for a few moments before her fingers found the neck of the bottle of vodka. With haste she wrapped her fingers around it; feeling her saliva beginning to cause the pill to dissolve in her mouth, leaving a taste she couldn't quite describe nor like. She pushed the rim of the bottle to her lips, and took a large mouthful; struggling to swallow the strong beverage down her throat. Once she had, and the drink took the pill down to her stomach, she opened her eyes; taking a large gasp of air before choking on the toxic. As the beverage danced in her stomach, she felt her second bit of slight relieve that lasted barely a flash.

More tears ran down her face, dripping onto her shirt to create dark blue patches. The straps fell down further to her elbows, yet she cared not; even though her white breasts were partly on show. The fabric tickled at her flesh, while the heat of the room kept her happy from the lack of clothing she wore. If 'happy' was the right word to use. She had never hated herself more then she did sat there in the hotel. She let out another sob, whispering she was sorry to the child growing within her stomach. With a faint voice, which sounded as if it would break at any moment, she carefully told him; "I'll take you back to your daddy soon…And…" more tears ran down her face as her eyes began to grow red and sore from crying so much in the strange, empty place. "…We'll be..." her hand, shaking like it belonged to a fearful child, ran across and onto her stomach; hoping to soothe over the child. "…We'll be such a happy family…" more tears; more sobs as she recalled her own childhood for only a few seconds. "I won't let you hurt…Please…" she almost seemed to beg with herself; "I won't let you hurt…Please…"

Tightening her fingers around the fabric, though her wrist felt as weak as anything, she let out her final sob before taking another gulp of the vodka. Again she choked on the liquid, before clumsily reaching over to the side table to place it down. Carelessly, she almost knocked it to the ground, but luckily gained its balance. Her darkened curls fell foreword once more as she looked down at the colourful pills on the bed sheets; the whites blending in, while the reds sticking out like sore thumbs. Her mind drifted as she took a handful of the locks, bringing them to her face. The light of the sun reflected shades of silver against the black, causing the girl to frown slightly. The scent of the quite recently used hair dye lingered into her nostrils; a smell she quite strangely enjoyed. Pursing her lips together, she leaned across the bed, making some of the pills disappear under the sheets or fall onto the floor though she was too oblivious to notice. Looking over the bed, she saw her black backpack; along with the plastic bag chaos had given her. Pushing her shaking legs out of the bed, she forced herself to stand on the carpet the moment she could. As she did, her body turned to jelly, almost causing the still, slightly drunk, woman to fall foreword but luckily something alarmed her in her mind; sending her hands to fall onto the wall; holding her up. That was when common sense began to kick in as she realised she would need to sober herself up to find her older brother, which she would have to do; she couldn't spend another night aimlessly drinking herself into nothingness, as brilliant as the feeling was (and oh it was fantastic; it was the most amazing experience she had ever had – to just forget about everything and anything; all the pain and the sorrow and the blood and those thoughts and feelings). Biting her lip, she waited for the plain room to stop spinning in her peripheral vision, before kneeling down. As she bent down, she suddenly dropped to her bones; her drunkenness still apparent despite how much she tried to think straight her body would not comply. She had almost crashed into the bag, crammed full with clothes Gaignun didn't know she owned (old clothes from her childhood – she figured that if he did come after her it would make it easier to hide from him) but luckily missed by a few mere inches. For a moment she had to think what she was doing again as her eyes looked at the pills that had fallen, trying to distract her, yet she snapped back into reality; fighting against the two whole mouthfuls along with the stuff she had taken the previous night. Her jelly-like hands dipped into the plastic bag before pulling out a small clear box, with just a picture upon it of extremely dark brown eyes; the contacts missing from the packet.

For a moment, she stared at the box, wondering what it meant that the colourants were missing until she figured, dimly, they were in her own eyes and had been for enough time. The common sense part of her mind questioned whether to try and take them out with her body in the state it was, but she was already pushing herself up to her feet with the aide of the bed that she completely forgot the moment she was on her toes. When she stood, she placed her left hand on the wall; the curtain grazing her knuckles softly. Her different shaded eyes glanced around the room; two doors leading her in different directions yet she could barely remember which one led to the bathroom or the other room (which if she remembered right was an open plan kitchen and miniature living room). As she walked over the soft carpet, which tickled her feet, she decided to check the door nearest to her. Carefully, as if a monster lurked on the other side (it wasn't the nicest feeling in the world to awaken in a strange place, no matter how much she knew she was alone), she pushed the button to open the door, hoping it would be quiet; which is was. When it slid open, a light immediately came on, something she didn't quite enjoy, but it illuminated the room, which was exactly what she had hoped for; a bathroom. To her right was the bath, with a golden shower curtain, which had been pulled back, while straight in front was the toilet and to her left was the sink with a beautiful gold framed mirror above it. Gently, she walked into the windowless bathroom; her feet not enjoying the cold change to the tiles but still, she didn't think much of it (not that she could think much of anything). Turning to her left carefully, as to not fall into the sink, she came eye to eye with her reflection.

A thousand and one emotions welled in her gut and it felt like she was a Kirshwasser all over again, staring at her reflection after a beating from Albedo and pulling her wig off. Yet she didn't see her natural hair colour at all; instead she saw just the firm black locks, which reminded her of her husband. The jet locks didn't look right against her skin shade, which was as pale as anything; thin strands looked wrong against her face yet she didn't care much for them. Soothingly, she ran her fingers through her hair; brushing out the knots that had appeared in her curls, before looking at her parted lips, which smelt of alcohol. She grazed her eyes to her blotchy cheeks, and then to her skin caked in makeup mixed with dry tears. Her eyes, which were a deep brown shade, and so unlike her, were blood shot and red; while the skin around it was just as vivid in colour.

Quickly, as a sickening feeling over came her, something in her mind worked before she truly felt her stomach lunge and spin a few times. With haste, almost snapping her neck in half, she turned her head to the toilet before bending over slightly; the bathroom small enough that she didn't have to move far before she involuntary purged the alcohol in her stomach. Tears ran down her cheeks as she moved her hair out of the way, allowing the foul tasting liquid to be emptied. As she threw up, she hoped it would help her wishes to become more sober within the next hour or so. Once she had finished, she flushed the toilet before sniffing. Reaching with a hand trembling from being sick so, she grabbed some tissue; wiping over her mouth and nose before throwing it into the water. Coughing slightly, her throat burned yet she ignored it; knowing it was no ones fault but her own. Shakily, she turned back to the sink; running a tap as she looked at her reflection once more, which was far redder then before and half a dozen more burst blood vessels appeared on her skin. Grabbing the sweet smelling soap, she washed her hands in the hot water before turning the cold tap on. Quickly, she splashed the water on her face, feeling more human from doing as such though the alcohol still remained in her veins. Eventually, she had managed to wash away most of the makeup, though she planned to take the rest away with a warm shower later. Her flesh felt numb from the cold, yet better then it had done and a nice refreshing feeling came to her as she turned off the taps. For another moment she stared at her reflection, wondering momentarily if she could change the person on the other side, yet she pushed away the thought as she recalled the contacts around her gems. Her fingers still trembled as she pulled down her bottom lid, yet somehow she had managed to remove both of the contacts within a matter of five minutes. More tears, though she was certain she couldn't cry anymore, drifted down her wet face, yet she couldn't care less for them. Checking her eyes once more, she admired the brown shade before dumping the contacts in the white bin sat under the sink. As she dropped the contacts into the bin with her left hand, she noticed the sparkling gems of her wedding and engagement rings. Staring, she recalled the words they had vowed to one another;

'_For better or for worse, till death do us part.'_

But she wasn't leaving him, she tried to argue with herself. She wanted to make things far better for him; she wanted to receive a punishment for her selfish deeds, sort out her maddening life before returning to him to make him far happier. She couldn't bring him along to find Gabriel; to find answers for that were putting too much strain upon him. As she argued with herself, she slipped down onto the tiled ground; the cold biting against the back of her thighs and legs, yet she didn't notice; too far into her own thoughts to even know the world was still spinning around her and clocks were still ticking.

* * *

_Sorrowfully, or fearfully (even he couldn't distinguish the two feelings he held), Gaignun watched his fiancé with serene emerald gems, which tried their best to cloud up the emotion welling in his heart. Scattered across the bathroom floor were clothing items; his dress shirt, along with her underwear she had been wearing not so long ago when he had found her in the night, screaming about those thoughts; his black blazer along with his tie and his socks, which were already damp and dark from the water. The fragile young woman, clad in scars, was sat in the bath; the water flowing up to her hips. She had brought her knees up to her chest, with her arms going across them to prevent Gaignun from looking at her breasts or she was sat dejectedly from the world, though he assumed it was more the latter than former; she rarely hid from him anymore. Her lilac coloured gems, which she had been quite fond of, stared foreword at the taps yet at nothing at all, in the dimly lit bathroom, which held a strange aura about it the girl could not feel._

_It was the early hours of the morning, just before he needed to head to work, though with her being in the state that she was, he wondered whether to go or not to go. She couldn't even bring herself out of bed; instead she stared up at the ceiling with her dulling gems. He had to undress her, run her bath and there he was, making sure the water was warm with his strong hands; his white silk sleeves pulled up past his elbows to prevent the material getting wet. Leaning foreword, he reached for a large cup with a picture of Winnie the Pooh upon it holding a red balloon that she had picked out a few months ago. As he reached for it, he tenderly kissed her sharp shoulder; hoping soft movements might break her from the daze that she was in. Using the water behind her back, he dipped the cup into it to collect as much as possible before bringing it up to her wine coloured locks. Slowly, with one hand brushing through her hair, he poured the water on her; just on the bottom half first. Carefully, he took a second cup full and placed a hand on her forehead to stop the water falling over her eyes as he allowed it to wet her locks. For a moment he looked at her, sensing a peace welling from her skin as he tendered to her like a father would a child. When he was sure her hair was wet enough, on the third cup full that had flattened her thick curls into thin waves; he reached for the strawberry shampoo. Unsure of how much to use, for he only used a tiny bit, he put a large dollop of the creamy white liquid in the palm of his hand, before putting the cap back on. Putting the shampoo onto both hands, he slowly worked its way into her hair; going from the tip to the top, always making sure none of it would touch her face. To his pleasure he had exactly the right amount to create white foam along her hair, which seemed to magically grow a few inches in the water._

_As he tenderly massaged her scalp, he put a smile on his face, enjoying how he tendered to his fiancé so, though pained still from her emotionless state. "Does that feel good?" he softly asked her, shuffling slightly from knee to knee as they became numb, though he couldn't care less; he stay in that position all day if it meant she was alright. Though he was granted no reply but the slight twitch of her index finger upon her left hand, he continued to speak in his content tone only she was allowed to hear; "It smells good. I really like this stuff," he draped his hands from her hair, washing the foam off in the still clear water. Again, he reached for the cup and began to scoop the water into it. This time, he started at the top and worked his way down to remove the shampoo from her locks. He was slow, delicate and careful as he did the top half; making sure nothing touched her face again. The water splashed down into the bath, carving gently over her shoulders, tops of her arms and back. Her skin looked beautiful wet; not sexual beautiful, but just stunning beautiful, at least to Gaignun's eyes. She was a gem, whether anyone else could see or not. When he finally finished with the shampoo, the water at her back had foam sitting on top of it, while the other half, where her legs and the taps were, was still clear. He reached for the conditioner finally, repeated the process and kissed the side of her face when he had done. For a moment he stared at her, looking at her dry chest, stomach and knees before allowing his eyes to graze over her seemingly locked arms. "Fay, honey," he whispered in her ear delicately. Slowly, he placed a warm, damp hand on her left arm. "Move your arms for me, sweetheart," she didn't do anything, but when he tenderly tugged at her bones, they moved at his wishes. He opened her arms, like the petals of a flower opened; revealing its true beauty. Once more he kissed her shoulder, before reaching for the soap and continuing his actions._

_Once he had finished and she smelt of fresh strawberries only (he hated to admit it, but his skin was far too sensitive to have anything perfume-scented in the form of soap on it), he slid an arm around her back; her slightly drying locks turning magically into curls once more and touching his sleeves. Another arm slipped underneath her legs; only his forearms touching the water though he cared not if he were to get soaked bringing her out; as long as the blazer remained fine then nothing else mattered. With ease, his amazingly strong arms lifted her from the water; thousands of beads dripping back down into the bathtub when they were disturbed. He shuffled back on his knees before laying her on a white towel he had set out before the bath had even begun; her back leaning against the tub. Turning his back, he grabbed a fresh white towel that she had folded on the rack just a few days ago, dried off his hands and arms before turning back to her. For a moment he stared; his brows having risen. She was staring at him with her pale lips parted gently; her eyes holding some saddened emotion he didn't quite understand. Her white teeth were softly pushed against her bottom lip as they stared at one another, him waiting for her to speak. A little pang of hope came through him, but just as soon as it appeared, it disappeared. Once again, she had turned her head and sealed her lips; staring up at the ceiling with a distant look upon her face. He hadn't a clue where she was, but she was somewhere deep in her mind; away from him and away from life, and he couldn't do anything about it. Sadly, he looked to the ground before moving his numb legs so he could be at her side. With one hand, he spread the large towel across her naked body, while his other brushed some of her dry bangs from her face. He kissed her cheek before beginning to dry her body as softly as possible._

* * *

Emerald eyes read over the words again, which were becoming nothing but a blur after what seemed like the hundredth time they fell over them. Never had he held so much raw emotion within his gems; never had he felt the wish to cry like a blubbering baby or scream like an angered man, livid with sheer rage. The only thing he failed to feel was true heartbreak, for he believed her words about her coming back (though he feared how long that would take, but part of his mind assured him she wouldn't 'come back' for he would find her well before that happened, though again he was torn – whether to allow her to carry on with her wishes or to bring her back). From the wording of the letter, to the shaking handwriting and scribbled out writing, he knew she loved him; hell he knew it before she even wrote the letter; it wasn't hard to see in her lovely gems. Even during that one weak where she had fallen out of her mind he could still feel something with every split second glance he was granted to the aura about her. But still, he felt as if he had failed his beloved; he hadn't protected her from the hell she had gone through, nor had he truly seen the turmoil it had caused her. He couldn't even begin, nor did he want to, what she was going through at that point; what she was thinking or anything of the sort. Before chaos had removed himself from Gaignun's sights, just as he wished, he told him she had pills for the baby – to keep him safe no matter what would happen to Faith or what she would consume or ingest, though Gaignun hadn't a clue what he meant by that. He hadn't any idea that while he was travelling back to his home on Second Miltia she was getting as wasted as possible in the night to forget everything and anything. To him, she was a good little girl that only drank a glass of wine during meal times like he did, or while they were out at formal occasions, but from her words, he could tell she only wished to be normal; a lifestyle he couldn't provide, what with her life and his own. But he vowed with himself to make it better for her when she returned, or when he found her.

Still, he was torn, as he fumbled the gift she had give him of a real four-leaf clover that had been left on the desk, whether to or not find her. But then, something in his mind snapped; he had to find her. He _would_ find her and that chaos would help him; he was out of a job so he had a lot of time to offer to Gaignun. He had al the time in the world, for letting Gaignun's life walk out of the door; or so the emerald eyed man believed. He only wanted her back. He only wanted the gem he loved so much back. He wanted to help her. To stop her from hurting; to make her smile again.

* * *

_That night she cried. Again. She didn't know she was crying but she was doing it; salted tears dampening the pillow like the water dampening his sleeves when he bathed her every single morning. She liked bathing herself every morning; awakening to wash her curls, to spend time on herself, though her hair looked as beautiful as it did everyday. That was the only thing Gaignun couldn't do; style her hair how she liked him to. In the morning, or previous day (he hadn't any idea whether it was past midnight or not) he had straightened her hair. He pulled the locks into sections, straightening each little curl as she often did; making her hair look smoother in the light. Unlike the times she did it, the straight-as-a-pin locks only stayed straight for a few hours, rather then twenty-four like she could do. He had taken the days off as they came, this being the third (or the fourth – he was utterly lost with the clock). Working from home, he kept his eye on her, which wasn't that hard to do. All he did was turn the television on for her, and play her favourite films or cartoons; starting with playful cartoons and then going to serious films or horror ones, and then to cartoon's again. During his lunch break, or any break, he read to her Twisted by Jeffery Deaver. Once or twice she had looked him in the eye but most of the time she made no moment whatsoever, but she ate when he helped her and drank when he did as well. He knew not to take her to the doctor, and he planned to phone chaos or Damion by the end of the week to tell them what had happened if she hadn't made any recovery. Even though her emotionless state disturbed him, it was when she sobbed in the night; her hands tightening around her pillow that really got to him. All he could do was attempt to soothe her, hoping to crack through the hard shell she had most likely involuntarily made around her mind. He kissed her face, her forehead and her arms; soothed his fingers over her flesh and played with her hair exactly how she loved but instead of nuzzling him in a loving return, she only continued to cry with her eyes scrunched shut. Often he questioned what had happened during those days he was away; whether her brother had come and visited or if chaos had said anything to her, though Rubedo told him he got a few messages from her and she seemed utterly fine. But she wasn't 'utterly fine' as he knew. He had found her, in the dead of night, walking the streets in a manic mess. He promised her to never leave her alone again and if he ever had to leave, he would fight for her to come; she wouldn't be out of his sights._

_Pulling her light body against his, he held her as tightly as possible in the pitch black room. Unconsciously, he winced from her loud sobbing that overtook the silence, wishing he could just make her smile, though it seemed like an impossible thing to do. He had tried to overcome her mind through the communication link; to see what was inside of her, though she had like a metal barrier wrapped against her; a strength stronger than even his own. She was impossible to get inside; impossible to break during such a moment. As he nuzzled the inside of her neck, he fearfully questioned whether she would ever be the same again._

* * *

When Faith had finally pushed her way out of the numbing sensation of the alcohol thanks to a couple of slices of toast with peanut butter and jelly upon them (she had to hold back the tears as she remembered how Gaignun often made her such a delicious breakfast – hers tasting terrible compared to his though she cooked far, far more then he did), she had searched through her backpack for clothes. Eventually decided she wished not to ruin too much, she dressed back into what she wore the previous day; dark jeans along with the oversized black and white stripped jumper that hid the lump of the baby along with all her feminine attributes. Before changing, however, she had slipped in the shower and towel dried her hair into pretty black locks that she still couldn't get used to no matter how many times she gazed into the mirror. Even the eyes she used to look at the reflection were too odd for her liking; too dark compared to her ivory skin shade, which had faded from the redness but still held the burst blood vessels. She had thrown up twice since the first time; once in the shower and once just as she was about to brush her teeth, but both times had allowed her to feel better, and after an hour of being fine, she realised she had gotten rid of all the toxins from her system. She had placed the bottle of vodka back in the backpack, along with her toothbrush and sleeping shirt and placed all the pills back in the bottle. When she had done, she put it in a separate pocket of the bag, which held something she hadn't remembered being there before. Inside was a hand sized piece of card, in the shape of a rectangle. Carefully, with still shaking hands, Faith pulled the card from where it rested; reading over the words carefully; going again to make sure she saw the sentences right.

'_**One Way Ticket: From: SOUTHERN MILTIA (SSM) To: SECOND MILTIA SECTOR ONE (SMS1) Adult: ONE Start Date: 20 – SEPT – 68 Number: 11556 – 937691970'**_

On the corner of the ticket, where an orange line had been printed, she saw a crossed signal of two arrows pointing in separate directions; the symbol of the train's that still, weirdly, ran between certain areas of Second Miltia. The closest train station to her home had to have been five miles away, and a part of her was proud of achieving such a thing, but why had she chosen the city area of Second Miltia? She was growing closer and closer to the home Gaignun owned, which was somewhere in the west midlands. She knew how to get there; which trains to take but she wasn't ready to just yet. Still, she was going to find her brother and as she packed her backpack up, checking the money she had, she had a faint idea of where to find him first.

_I'm naked; I'm numb,  
I'm stupid; I'm staying,  
And if cupids got a gun then he's shooting,  
You're drunk; you need it; real love; I'll give it,  
So we're bound to linger on,  
We drink the fatal drop,  
Then love until we bleed,  
Then fall apart in parts._

**{Comments}** That's like my own ticket number from my last ticket going up town on the train lol XD Just a bit of trivia for ya x3 I enjoyed this, though I felt like crying when I was writing about her and the baby O.O I dunno why though; it's mad, init? XD Anyway, I do hope you enjoy and it's far better then the last one ^^ I'm still unsure of how to portray Gaignun though lol. SORREH for the chunky paragraphs btw! Dx [ i tried to un-chucky them and now i dont like them XD]


	45. Dollhouse

**{ Chapter Thirteen } dollhouse**

**{ Comments}** I showed this chapter to a few people & they don't like it :/ They think Faith's a little too…"not there" if that makes sense so I'm worried about uploading this D= It'll be more xenoy soon; promise!

This is the WORST chapter i've ever done but im in a rush today and there's so many ideas in my head that i needed to start them off, if that made sense, so the next chapter WILL be good; promise.

Faith liked to play games. When she was little she could remember playing games all on her own like scrabble, or chess or just video games, though she didn't enjoy them quite so much. But, technically, she wasn't all on her lonesome or she didn't feel as if she were. She would split herself into two different people; one person being Faith while the other being Jaime. This could be just another game like she was a child all over again.

It's just a game; if she keeps running she'll never have to look back. Not until she can find her brother that is. Even if people call her name; even if someone touches her arm or thinks that she's Misses Kukai then she won't look back or talk to them because she's not Faith Kukai. She's not pregnant with the chairman's child and she's not even married. She's Jaime; Jaime Lee. Jaime's never had a boyfriend, and she's not straight but she's not gay; she simply likes people. Jaime's hair is naturally black, and not a strange, mad shade like Faith's. She's got simple brown eyes and her favourite colour is blue (Faith hated blue – she preferred pinks or whites). Jaime likes to eat lots and she can be quite quiet and reserved, but pretty talkative at the same time.

Faith decided she was playing hide and seek with Gaignun and Gabriel but Gabriel wasn't looking for her; only Gaignun was. And while he was looking for her she would be Jaime. She liked games; she liked them so much and this was exactly that; a little game to play.

She thought she had seen him once, on the second day; the day she was fully awake and moving about the city in the cold afternoon air while wearing a pair of floral shorts, painted lilac, with a camisole-like shirt with more flowers upon it in an identical colour. She was wearing a shirt underneath, of course, but because Jaime never got cold like Faith she didn't care so much.

Jaime Lee had never seen Gaignun Kukai before so she carried on walking, but took a turn in an alleyway; just in case. Jaime Lee paid no attention.

But later on in the afternoon, when Faith decided she wanted to not play being Jaime once she put on her jumper and entered a café for a vanilla coffee and a meal, she wished she had said something to him. She hated herself for being bitter to him because actually he was more than very lovely.

With one hand on her babies bump, the other crawled in her jumper pocket to retrieve her phone. When she held it in her little hand, she typed in the words;

'_The difference between the sprout and the bean; it is a golden ring; it is a twisted string.'_ And sent it to her husband.

* * *

_The story Damion Blanc told the nine-year-old on a cold winters night was one about a colourful Elephant; a story he had read to her so many times that he knew it off by heart, even without the book laden with pictures that she cared little about. All the little one cared for were the words coming from Damion's mouth as soft as silk; his eyes warm and caring; a sort she had only seen from her carer rather than her parents, whom she saw extremely little off. At the naïve, innocent, age of nine she had never shed anyone's blood; never had she harmed another living soul and nothing of the sort seemed wrong with her. There was a strange aura about her Damion knew of, yet he wouldn't speak of it. He would only care for her; play games with her during the day or read her stories or teach her the lessons she would need. When he finished the story, he ran his fingers through her messy, wavy, locks and smiled softly at the child he treated like his own; the child he knew he couldn't live without if anything were to happen to her. "Good night then, little one."_

_Just as he was about to stand up from the bed, her little hand grabbed the sleeve of his charcoal blazer; her fingers tight around the fabric; a touch so weak yet so firm and desperate he couldn't help but freeze in his place. Turning to the child, he looked into her eyes that looked like they were about to form tears. Just as he was about to ask what the matter was, she whispered; "Tell me another story," though he knew this was not what she actually wanted from him._

"_It's time to go to sleep," he told her as firmly yet as kindly as possible. "I've already told you a story, Faith."_

_For a moment she only pouted, before saying with a breaking voice; "Don't leave me alone."_

_His heart sunk for a long moment as he looked at the child's startlingly blue eyes. Again, his hand soothingly ran through the locks of her hair, which had little pink within them at that time, before trailing over her round face. Slowly, he pulled his hand away before sighing slightly. He looked at the shut bedroom door, and then to the candle he had lit to provide her with a little bit of light. "Are you frightened of the dark?" he asked, though they never had such problems like that with her. In the corner of his eye he saw her shake her head; tightening her fingers around the sheets. For a moment he contemplated his options, though the most of them were ones he didn't want to go ahead with, and instead removed the blazer he was wearing. Standing to his feet, he hung the blazer up on her desk chair, before taking off his shoes. Gesturing for her to scoot over in the bed, she did as such; allowing him to lye down with her, yet not under the sheets; only above them. For a moment, he looked at her face illuminated by the orange light of the candle; the shadows flickering playfully against her skin._

"_What do you fear?" he finally asked, tightening the blankets around her body so much that only her head wasn't covered. _

"_There's something in my bedroom," she told him with panic in her gems. The sentence didn't cause him to frown but his heart skipped a beat as thoughts loomed across his head. Sorrowfully, he looked at her and wrapped an arm around her little body. "Don't leave me," she whispered, before wrapping her short arms around him in return. Tucking her head into his chest, to hide from what she believed was in her room, she whispered her final sentence of the night; "Please don't leave, daddy."_

_His eyes widened from the word she had just called him, but his fingers ran soothingly through her hair to get her to fall asleep as his mind became riddled with thoughts. _

* * *

Brown headed Lock stared at the marks upon her abdomen in the reflection of the mirror in the red room, which had been ripped up just a week prior. Somehow, in the midst of all the pain and horror, she had managed to survive, and for the five days after the attack, she had been lying in a hospital with her body being reconstructed by the professionals; not even Nano Technology was good enough to try and fix her back to her old state. Instead, she had been reduced to sever scars upon her body, which hurt if she or her friends (who were fixated with them, especially Lewis along with Henri – both of them had pestered her ever single day in their apartment, telling her to take of her shirt though she hit them every time the question left their lips) touched them, even with gentle fingertips. But that wasn't the only disturbance she had from that horrific night, which all she could remember of was blood; it was the disappearance of her best friend Faith; the red headed woman who was far older than Lock. Despite their age gap that was about four years, the seventeen year old got on with the twenty-one year old like a house on fire. Lock had a far different lifestyle compared to Faith's; college work in the daytime, followed by getting high and drunk at night with her three roommates; Luis, Henri and Pieretta. Well, most nights it was four roommates; depending if she brought a little friend with her, though until those marks disappeared she knew she'd either be sleeping alone or saying the electric had gone out so no one could see her flesh in the dark. She wanted her best friend back; she wanted that beautiful red headed girl back in her life, who had allowed her to be the only bridesmaid at the wedding. She loved that woman; everything about her, and even her family. Lock loved Gabriel, who she had met many a time from Luis inviting him over (she could've sworn there was something between those two). She'd even been introduced to Damion, who she didn't really know much about, but he was the finest gentleman she'd ever met. She'd met with Gaignun Kukai more times then she could even count! The Gaignun Kukai; it was amazing. She knew she was lucky to have met so many lovely people, and that man, but she counted herself even luckier for just knowing Faith, who she had simply met on a train ride to Sector One in Second Miltia. Lock was just sixteen years old, and skipping a day at college; her hair was a sheer mess, with mascara running down her reddened face, which was normally a lovely tan shade. It was one of them days that had just started rough and were destined with her running away to the Kukai Foundation from her father; if not forever then just for a little while, but a woman with lilac eyes and wine red hair had spotted her; trying not to cry. Since that moment on, they had been two peas in a pod, though Lock absolutely refused to introduce the woman to her own lifestyle. Despite being older, she seemed far more innocent and she wished not to stain it.

"Oi, Emily, get the fuck outta dream world would ya?" came a voice from behind her, causing the girl to only frown deeply at the annoyance. Looking in the mirror with her extremely sharp eyes, she gazed at the blonde headed man called Henri stood at the door to her bedroom, wearing a pair of dark blue jeans along with a yellow t-shirt reading 'Sucker' on it with a picture of a pink octopus. She could hear the noise of the music playing in the background; something Pieretta (or Retty as they called her) put on just an hour ago, though Lock had forgotten completely about it; just like she often forgot her own real name of Emily unless Henri said it. For a moment she gazed around her red bedroom, which seemed small from all the clothes and accessories she had dangling off every piece of dark wooden furniture; colours were scattered here and there, along with bright scarf's and random shirts along with tons of jewellery. Yes, she most defiantly had the messiest room in the house that Henri just loved to tease her about. "Put some clothes on too. Ya put that cream on?" he asked, nodding to the table covered in makeup near the full length mirror, which also held a bottle of cream the doctors had given her to put on. It would apparently mask the scars, though they saw little improvement.

"'Course I did," replied Lock, gazing back at her body in the mirror that was only covered by a white bra along with bright pink underwear. He had seen her with less on; hell everyone in the apartment had, so she couldn't care less about standing there in her underwear. Henri leaned his side on the doorframe, watching as she moved over to her wardrobe with a slightly saddened face he had noticed a number of times since she arrived home from the hospital.

"Emma?" he questioned lightly as she slipped on a white shirt with a picture of the aifle tower on it in grey. She only raised her brows under her hair, which he saw through the gaps of her fringe; telling him to speak. "You worried about her, aren't you?"

"What do you think, Sherlock?" she snapped uncontrollably; wishing to death her friend had at least been in the hospital with her. "That was my best friend and no ones telling me where the bloody hell she is!"

"Call Master Gaignun," Henri told her with a small grin. He stepped into the dangerously messy bedroom, grabbed Lock's iPhone from her bedside table, before throwing it to her. Luckily, she caught the mobile with ease; glaring at the man for throwing such a belonging. "Or Damion. _Or_," he hung onto the word for a few moments before continuing; "You could get Gabriel's number off'a Luis."

"I'd rather not call Gabriel," she told him with disgust on her face as she tapped the screen of her phone; her heart pounding quickly beneath her chest to cause a sickening feeling to grow within her. "Don't even want to call Master Gaignun…"

"Or," Henri offered again with a small smirk, though it seemed like Lock wasn't paying attention as she held the phone to her ear; her hands trembling from calling such an important man when she was nothing but a teenager girl. "You could wait 'till Gabriel comes over lat-"

"Ah, Gaignun Kukai?" she nervously asked into the phone; silencing Henri immediately. She looked to the ground and began to pace like a lost animal; her stomach doing such summersaults that her arms were trembling. "No, this is Lock. Yes," she smiled softly from the words Henri couldn't hear. "No, I'm fine, thank you for asking. Uhm, I – sorry?" a frown appeared on her face as she looked at Henri; panic striking her eyes. "No, that's why I phoned you. I haven't seen her since her birthday," she stopped speaking as the man continued. Eventually she spoke though the frown didn't disappear; "I know Gabriel. I see him a lot; he hangs around here. Well, we saw him yesterday," she said; unaware of the fact that 'yesterday' was the first day of Faith's disappearance to Gaignun. "He's coming over today," she paused once more before nodding. "Yes. She knows my address; I wrote it in her phone book. You are?" she asked, with her eyes widening. "Are you sure? Is that necessary? Ah-alright…Alright then. See you later, bye."

Quickly, she hung up the phone before turning to Henri with a furious expression on her face. "You little shit head!" she yelled hard; her voice so loud it overtook the music in the background. With rage, she threw the phone onto her bed; watching for a moment as he bounced to the fuchsia pillows and not falling to hit the floor. "Call Master Gaignun," she mimicked angrily, causing Henri to rub his arms. "Ugh, sometimes I could strangle you, Henri! We've got Master-fucking-Gaignun arriving here in like four hours!"

Henri's eyes widened as he muttered a small; "Shit…" underneath his breath though Lock was utterly oblivious to it.

"She's missing too," she hissed once more. "It's all fucking up, Henri. Fuck, fuck, fucking the fuck up. You better go tell Retty to clear up. Oh, and call Gabriel but don't tell him Master G's coming," she didn't even bother to put on her jeans and instead went to work of hiding the plastic bags containing drugs in her bedroom. Just as Henri left the room, she slammed her fists onto the chest of draws, before allowing tears to stream down her face as she realised just how much her dear friend could be in danger. She prayed, oh how she prayed, Faith had someone survived just like Lock, in the horrible massacre.

* * *

_The phone call was short and sweet; or rather bittersweet to Gaignun who hadn't wished to result to such measures but he couldn't care for his beloved fiancé while working; she would need the assistance of the only man Gaignun could truly trust on her side of the family; Damion Blanc (little did Gaignun know that only months later the trust would be shattered like fragile glass made up of lies rather than sand). From the way the man acted around the 'little one' as he called her, it seemed to be such in such a loving way that Damion was more than a mere butler to the family, hence why he had hung around for so long; even after Emilia's sudden death (or murder as it should have been dubbed). As the man walked about the house, getting ready for work in the early hours of the morning while Faith slept (or lay) soundlessly in the bed, Damion was calmly travelling in the Foundation, a few hours after the phone call, with white earphones placed within his ears; music spiralling through to his mind beautifully. As he was being driven by the stranger in the front of the car, his finger tips calmly tapped silently at his knee to the piano by Yann Tierson that only he could hear. Though the music was utterly peaceful to his mind, his hands still seemed sweaty; moving because they needed to express the nerves rather than to go against the beautiful tones. Between his left hand's finger and thumb, he cradled a small rusted key. At times he would push it between his fingers against his left thigh, but other then that he only held it; feeling a sensation drawing over his wrist that seemed to act from nerves, oddly. He concentrated on the bumps against the old key, trying not to think of its meaning. Just as the black car drove up to Gaignun's secluded home, just on the edges of the private beach he, his 'brother' and Faith shared, Damion swiftly tucked the key into his breast pocket in such a movement that it would have been unseen to the driver in the front seat. The travelling being priceless for Damion, he simply thanked the man for his time, before stepping out into the cold day's air. When he was out in the fresh air he hadn't felt since travelling from Second Miltia, he gazed up at the sky between the trees along each pathway that lined the road. The trees were bare; their fingers providing lines across the grey sky like strengthened cobwebs, yet weaker at the same time. The sun had not yet risen, yet there was a small hint of light; only making the black sky slightly miserable in the attempts of it. Damion couldn't help but question; why with their technology did they include even the most miserable of seasons? Over the sound of his music, he heard the car driving away from him; alerting him he needed to go to the home to find Faith:_

_The woman that had named him daddy._

_Letting out the tiniest of sighs that turned to white in the air, he looked up to their home, which was just as average as anything yet surrounded by beautiful plants and trees, which Damion knew had been put there to remind Faith of her old home upon Second Miltia; an unconscious movement she had done. Slowly, he walked up the driveway, almost in apprehension. A foreboding feeling drew over him like water as he recalled Master Gaignun's words. There was something wrong that he could not describe; something that had prevented Faith from functioning properly or even speaking. Emotionless; an empty shell of a woman; that was what his child had become. Nothingness and Damion wished not to see it. But when he realised he thought of her as his child, he immediately scolded himself; mentally pinching the inside of his brain for doing such a foul thing. The child never had parents; at an early age Damion had been told Emilia along with Robert were not her mother or father but Damion pretended to be naïve; he pretended not to know. Eventually, he fell into his own lie; fell into their lies of being her parents but that one night when she had called him 'daddy' everything went spiralling out of control but he wouldn't think of such thoughts; not when she was twenty years of age. Yes, he was going to give her away just as a father would; yes he cared for her and would provide her with a home if she needed to and yes, of course, he would be her best friend whenever she wanted him to be but he would never allow himself to think of himself as her father. Things had gotten far out of control for that; things didn't need, what he believed to be selfish thoughts. She needed him to be Damion Blanc that only cared for her and didn't wonder to himself whether he thought it was wrong or right to pretend he was her father. _

_'I would never have treated her wrongly,' he couldn't help but think somewhere deep in his mind as he walked up to the deep wine coloured porch that was laden with fresh flowers; roses and daisies and lilies. 'I would never have wished for her death. Neither of them were truly her parents yet neither am I but I created a better home for her…' his hands tightened into tight fists as he felt something constrict within his chest; something that was nothing but raw hated dedicated to Emilia and Robert, who had both been hell bent on destroying her. 'Why could I have not been granted the title of 'Father' properly?'_

_Just as he was about to think more of the situation between him and Faith, the front door abruptly opened. Damion's feet stopped dead in their tracks, along with his hand that was floating within the air to grasp the banister along the porch steps he was about to step onto. His sea-coloured-eyes, which were a mixed of blue and green, stared for a moment at the girl under the doorframe; the girl he had just been thinking of. Tears were streaming down her paler-than-usual face, and her hair was limp and lifeless; the curls having turned into nothing but faded waves. She wore just a long shirt, which went at the midway point at her thighs, coloured ivory with a picture of an elephant upon it, causing him to remember the bedtime story he read to her. There was something missing from her gaze; something so un-Faith that his heart skipped a beat._

_"There's a monster coming," she whispered dryly, yet her voice was off; a sound Damion couldn't quite put his finger on, as strange as that seemed. "Nigredo doesn't see it. He's distracted. In love. It takes him. Eats out his insides," another few tears ran down her face; dripping to the floor, but her dry lips had pulled into a sinister smirk that reminded Damion of her facial expressions each time she committed a murder; surely she wasn't talking of herself. "It's human nature. Our emotions. Makes us **weak**," she spat out the word as her voice grew deeper. "Vulnerable," suddenly, her facial expression changed once more as she looked like she was going to break in half. "Daddy?" she whispered questionably, taking a small step foreword; her legs seeming to be like jelly to Damion's eyes. She took another step foreword, but almost fell; causing Damion's legs to move faster then they ever had done before. Without thinking, he was already at her side; holding her little, freezing cold body against him. For a moment she didn't know what to do, but eventually wrapped her arms around his warm body. Shutting his eyes, he couldn't help but kiss the side of her head gently. "There's something here," she whispered, causing the man to frown. "Don't leave me. Please," her fingers tightened around his blazer as she began to lightly cry into the fabric._

_"I won't."_


	46. Bound To Linger On

_{chapter forty-six}__ ; ; bound to linger on_

_{comments}__ worst…chapter that I've ever wrote. I'm so sorry. It's just …bwarh DX I'll try to re-write it ^^_

_The night before Faith left, she had spoken to chaos. Just a few words in private yet those words clung to him like the skin on his body; "Do you know what hurts the most about a broken heart?" her voice was delicate; gentle like she was a child. "Not being able to remember how you felt before … Try and keep that feeling…Because…if it goes, you'll never be able to get it back…"_

_For a moment chaos only paused, before whispering a question; "What happens then?"_

"_You lay waste to the world," she told him, looking down to the floor in the kitchen. "And everything in it," and with that she left him; going upstairs to her husband, and leaving him to dwell on those words._

* * *

It hit her then. Like a train crash, soaring through the streets of Second Miltia before slamming straight into Faith, not Jaime Lee, and causing tears to stream down her face just minutes after sending the short and sweet text message to her husband. Everything trembled from the tips of her fingers to the depths of her heart; shaking like an earthquake emerged from the dark floorboards. It didn't even take seconds for the salted tears to fall down to her chin, dampening her skin and dropping to the booth's table, just by her white bowl, half full of broccoli soup (her absolute favourite and so warming to her stomach and the baby in the terribly cold weather). They continued, like her eyes were taps, falling effortlessly down her face without a word coming from her lips. Her trembling fingers let go of the silver spoon as she pushed her back into the soft fabric of her seat, knowing no one in the almost empty café paid any attention to her sat in the corner on her lonesome with just a soup and a cup of tea. The spoon slowly sunk into the thick, creamy soup as she brought her thickly covered arms up; her fingers touching her face while her arm crossed over her stomach, almost protecting the baby below. Thoughts and feelings rung through her of the guardian she had once known; the one hidden far in the shadows, yet someone she would go to faster than she would to chaos in a time of need; Damion Blanc. She had no recollection of ever calling him 'daddy' yet the word didn't need to escape her lips for her to know the feeling she held for the man. Everything punched her heart; the realisation of how much she truly cared for him, a love she hadn't felt for anyone before – something different to Gaignun's, Nigredo's and even chaos' and yet the realisation of how everything had been a sham. She had wanted to protect Damion; she had always felt bad for the pain she believed to cause him; the hassle of having to live with such a woman yet she cared for him enough to ask him to give her away to her husband. Damion was the hidden man; nothing yet everything. But he ruined everything, or so she believed. If he hadn't have done whatever he had she wouldn't have been sat in the café, crying her eyes out while wanting to see her husband yet trying to push away that emotion; deny her temptation. Without Damion she wouldn't have contemplated suicide, which would have murdered her growing child in her tummy; wouldn't have fucked things up and hurt so many people, which she still believed to be her fault. As the tears continued, she ended up putting her elbows on the table; her face sinking into her hands that were half covered by her long sleeves. She wasn't sure whether she was allowed to hate Damion or even dislike him or not. Everything was confusing; everything hurt yet nothing felt like her. Her hands felt foreign to her body, while her heart felt like it had disappeared entirely.

As she dug her face deeper into the darkness, her sleeved becoming damp, a noise came to her of a sharp bell chirping, followed by a buzz of her phone vibrating on the table. Instantly, her heart skipped a beat, causing her to feel as if she wanted to be sick yet an odd feeling of sickness – as if she hadn't eaten for days on end. A little sob escaped the back of her throat, so quiet it was like a pin dropping to the ground, as she finally brought her hot, reddened and damp face from her hands. For long moments she looked down at the phone like it was a monster, before allowing her left hand to take it slowly. Carefully, she flipped the phone open, her shoulder blade feeling odd to movement; nothing felt like her own body. As she looked at the screen with a little sniff, the words seemed blurred to her still strangely chocolate eyes for a moment or two, before they formed sentences that made her heart quiver; _'I need you to come home. I know that you're somewhere in Second Miltia, Fay. Meet me near the park in five minutes. Please.'_

"Don't do it," someone hissed from the side of her the moment she finished the sentence. The voice was so abrupt, so shocking that she literally jumped in her seat. Quickly, as the feelings of sorrow and guilt subsided from her like they would in the company of Gaignun, Faith turned her head to the side; seeing no one in the booth with her; only people on the other side of the café who were far too deep in their own lives she had been imagining about before sending Gaignun the message. As she sat, with a perplexed expression looming across her reddened face, she only realised how the voice had come from somewhere in the depths of her mind, similar to the one whispered to Gaignun during their little link-up. A feeling of fear came upon her so quickly she hadn't any time to realise the warmth from Gaignun's text message; instead her heart began to quiver once more as she took the spoon from the top with her finger and thumb, playing with the soup inside of the neatly whitened bowl; attempting to ignore the shivering of her shoulders, going down to her elbows. It was the oddest of sensations; far more bewildering than the sensation of having Gaignun or Albedo communicate with her, but just as she thought of them another idea sprung to her from the haziness of her head; was it Damion speaking with her? Could it really be that cruel man, still alive somehow and talking to her in an attempt to keep her from Gaignun? Perhaps, perhaps not. All she knew was that she was wasting her minutes by placing with the soup, staring into nothingness.

So, she took her notes from inside of her bag, placed them upon the table and stood to her feet. As she did, a dizzy spell came over her, causing her to place her hands on the top of the table for support; her heart slowing down as the shivering fear began to subside without her will (not that she could control her emotions so easily, mind). A hazy feeling drew over her as she tried to think, yet something was blocking her mind; something she had felt so many times, yet only realised the feeling after she had done the worst; allowed whatever was inside of her to escape and to kill. But, even when she thought of that she couldn't feel fear or panic; the emotions were none-existent to her, despite the fact she had felt them even minutes ago. Quickly, she snapped some common sense from her mind, reaching down for the phone with her left hand; the item blurred to her vision, which was slowly darkening. She wasted no time to call the man she wanted to; someone she couldn't harm but someone that could help her in some odd way. Only she prayed with her heart that he had a phone, like he did before; had something on him that she could use to communicate with him with. Only, it slightly shocked her that she still held his number in her phone, but when the ringing stopped in her ear she hadn't any time to think of the situation anymore;

"I need you to help me," she whispered before the other person could speak, desperation in her tone though the feeling was disappearing like water was washing over her.

"_Fay?"_ the voice on the other end of the phone was familiar; too familiar but too much not like the voice she expected to her. Instantly, her eyes opened as a feeling of panic came over her.

"G-Gaignun?" she whispered, her throat becoming dry. "What are you…?"

"I have chaos' phone," he told her quickly. "Where are you? What's happened?"

"Something's inside…" she whispered, lowering her head until it rested on her arms; allowing darkness to fall over her sights. The fabrics of her jumper felt soft to her skin, yet something prevented her from enjoying anything of it.

"Where are you, _sweet_?" he asked her softly, but she couldn't only shake her head as a sob came over her.

"I don't know," she told him; genuinely unable to remember where she was. "There's food and tea and …" in an instant her body became limp as she fell into what could only be described as a slumber. The phone dropped from her loose fingers; smashing against the floor yet not grabbing a single person's attention.

* * *

"_She spoke of a monster," Damion informed Gaignun with a light voice as to not disturb the sleeping girl on the red sofa, decorated with floral patterns, who was the topic of their conversation. Her fiancé had perched on the edge of the sofa, already dressed for work, while Damion sat on an arm chair of identical style near a lit fireplace to keep the air toasty warm. It was more than obvious that Faith had touched upon Gaignun's home with her traditional items, rather than electrical, which Gaignun would have been used to. Damion found it sweet Gaignun had changed things around to make her feel more comfortable – from the technology to allowing her to plant flowers outside. He found it even more sweet that Gaignun had already been caring for her during her poor mental state; another man would have freaked out and perhaps left or at least gotten annoyed but Gaignun held himself together though Damion could see he was personally hurt from what happened. Carefully, Damion leaned his elbow on his knee; allowing his hand to support his freshly shaven chin as he looked at the man opposite him, whose emerald gems were gazing over his beloved sleeping soundlessly with an ivory blanket upon her Gaignun had put tenderly on her, of course. It was then that Damion had seen how thin she was; how she was nothing but bones and skin. His heart had skipped a beat, and as Gaignun's hand ran across her arm that was thinner than a branch, he wondered whether Gaignun's was skipping as well. As his eyes grazed to Faith as he wondered of her weight loss, he questioned why he had not asked Gaignun of something or mentioned what he could see. He had every right, of course; having helped raise her and knowing her for so long Damion had every right to be concerned and ask her partner of her health. "Master Kukai?" he questioned lightly, causing Gaignun to look straight into his sea coloured eyes. "Could I ask you … about Faiths weight? She seems to be far thinner from the last I saw of her."_

_Holding his emotions in a bottle behind his brain, Gaignun kept his eye contact with Damion as he took a few seconds of life to hold everything in. After those seconds past, he awkwardly shuffled in his chair; a movement so unlike the chairman of the Kukai Foundation that despite the subtleness of a body movement, Damion couldn't help but feel the ache in his heart. "I … Can't understand it… She eats… all of the time; every moment of every day and not healthy foods, which I imagine you know," Damion agreed with this by a quick nod of his head; getting Faith to eat something green was utterly impossible. "She loses it too quickly for a girl of her height. She's underweight now, just barely though, but still, underweight. She doesn't like it… She doesn't like anything going on…"_

_Seeing the sorrow grow within the supposedly steel strong man, Damion couldn't help but wince inwardly, before speaking in a caring manner; "She loves you, Gaignun. None of these things are to do with you, and she knows this. Somehow, I think that she still likes anything going on wholly because you're around. Has she had a medical check?"_

_He gave a solemn nod. "Yes. Two with a doctor including blood tests. They can't see anything wrong with her and I haven't wished to continue seeing them, due to what has been going on."_

"_She'll get better," Damion promised him with a smile; "And things will be fine one day. I assure you."_

"_Thank you," Gaignun was unable to return the smile; his heart wondering whether things would truly be okay once more for he knew far more than Damion did; what had just escaped the chairman's lips were nothing but lies._

* * *

"_It's no good though, is it Gaignun?" her voice was as light as a feather, soft and beautiful though the words she spoke caused a frown to appear on his face. It had been a few weeks since she had suddenly begun to talk and this was the first time she acted not herself in such a while._

"_Why…? What is…?" he asked softly, turning to his naked beloved who lay against his own bare body in the darkness of the night. Her skin was cold against his yet as soft as silk._

"_All this sex," she replied to him with a little smirk before looking up at the ceiling and placing one hand on his slightly damp groin underneath the sheets, which caused him to tense immediately. "Doesn't last. An orgasm. A want, a feeling of amazement. Can you still feel it?" she asked, with a little squeeze of her tiny hand that made a hiss escape the back of his throat. "No. You're worried," she turned to him with a little playful grin before poking his nose with her spare finger. "I'm upset. Hey!" she quickly turned to him properly, removing her hand from its resting place and putting it on his shoulder. In the darkness she could see his glowing eyes, melted in confusion while to him hers held something almost disturbing. "We should kill ourselves."_

"_P-Pardon…?" he questioned with a mystified and stunned tone, causing Faith to laugh._

"_Kill ourselves," she repeated innocently. "During sex. The second we come, BANG!" she yelled the word while hitting the mattress with both of her fists; one on each of his sides. She moved to straddle him, the sheets still flowing over her thin body. "Immortalizing the moment of joy between us both. It'll be magical. See, I only think you should die when you're so happy you can float. And we'll float," curiously, she looked down between her legs and giggled cutely. "You're getting a stiffy. Like the idea?"_

"_No, no I do not," he told her firmly before placing his hands on her hips. "We can't kill ourselves."_

"_Why?" she asked hurtfully. "Don't you want to be with me forever?"_

"_Of course-"_

"_Then die with me," she whimpered now; her eyes showing sheer pain. "There's always something in my head stopping all the good feelings but when I touch you and you touch me…It disappears…When you … go in my mind and we link together it stops it all. I don't want to be in my body anymore. I don't like what's inside of it," tears begun to stream down her face as she lay across his chest, allowing his arms to wrap around her body tightly. "You can stop it…" she whispered in his ear. "I know you can. You're going to be my knight in shinning armour."_

"_If we died could I be that knight?" he asked her softly, making her reply with a shake her head; her hair tickling his bare chest. "Exactly. I'm sorry Faith… I'm so sorry…" and as he whispered that, tears fell down his own face as he cuddled his love until she managed to sleep while he was left in the dark; more than troubled for her._

* * *

'_He's mine now. Failure. Lost your husband. Your child now. Everything. You are weak, Faith Ackermann.'_

When the sentence hissed through her mind, Faith was pushed from the sleeping form she had unwillingly fallen into. A gasp escaped the back of her throat as she felt a little shiver of fear crawl over her; her sight blurred yet as she looked around her surroundings confusion overwhelmed her. Once the blurred, haziness of her vision subsided, she just stared for long moments; the world about her something stranger than she had seen before yet familiar in the oddest of ways. A cool breeze drifted over her as she stared in awe at the area; a small part inside a forest, she believed it to be, with rocks climbing higher than the trees, or even cliffs as they were meant to be called. She had been placed near an overgrown, grey pebble-stoned-pathway, which lead straight through the gap as she called it to the thick woods ahead and behind of her; the cliffs to her right while when she looked to her left what she saw made a large gasp escape her lips once more. An old fashioned castle was there; the remains of it; not even a roof was left, or doors or anything of the sort. The grey rocks, which were identical to the shade of the pathway, were falling from their places; creating piles here and there and the entire decayed building was flooded in weeds, grass and an assortment of plants, though she couldn't see any flowers from her position. The dark, tall, looming trees had cast a horrible shadow upon the entire area, making her feel more disturbed than the voice or change of location had made her. There was a strange emptiness about the world; a fearfully odd thing that made her feel as if she was the only person alive.

But the second, almost wonderful, thing she had noticed when awakening suddenly, were her emotions. Something seemed to have fallen from her brain; drifting into nothingness and allowing her to think as clearly as possible; a thing she couldn't remember ever experiencing. Thoughts and feelings weren't coming and going in random jabs nor did anything feel hazy when she thought; even if her thoughts were of Gabriel and Damion; a refreshed, almost perfect, memory had come back to her with just a simple slumber. As her thoughts drifted from Gaignun to her baby, Nigredo, she placed a hand upon her stomach but the moment she did horror consumed her.

Tears instantly pricked in the corners of her eyes, her breathing caught up deep in her throat as she placed her hand harder on the jumper covering her stomach, feeling nothing but the concaveness. The was no lump; no little boy growing deep within her that she and her husband had created. Nothing. And in that instant she felt something die within her heart; her hands becoming numb as a scream escaped the back of her throat. That was when she broke; slamming her fists into the grass, screaming and sobbing out of her mouth while trying to get as much oxygen as she could yet she was using more than she had.

'_You wanted him to die,'_ a voice she knew hissed from the side of her, yet being so distraught from the loss she couldn't even begin to try to think of who was speaking to her.

Quickly, she shook her head; her curled hair, which she couldn't help but notice somewhere in her mind had turned back to its shade of pink, sticking to her damp red face. "No!" she screamed; her voice tearing her throat as her lungs ached for more oxygen. Her right hand dug into the grass; her nails painfully tearing at the ground while her left hand tightened into a fist. "You monster! You …fucking, fucking, fucking monster!" Instantly, a feeling draw over her, causing her to lift her head yet when she did another jab of fear drifted over her.

Stood there, with an expression she couldn't see through her agonised tears, was the man that had created her husband; the real Dmitri in the flesh whom she had seen a photograph of just once in her time of knowing Gaignun; his hair cut in the same fashion yet blonde, with lighter skin. A flush of anger mixed with such fear that caused her heart to pain, ripped through her; her hands trembling so hard that the shakes travelled up through her body and to her shoulder blades. "Go away!" was all she could yell at him. "I want Gaignun back, so stop toying with his fucking body…" more tears dripped down her face while she looked down at the ground; Dmitri moving to perch on the ground; his hands folded over his bent knees that held the majority of his weight. For a few moments he watched her, before she sobbed out another sentence; "I need Gaignun…"

"Unfortunately," he purred out with a surprisingly soft voice; "Being in this Encephalon Dive has separated us. Reasons for that I'm-"

Instantly she rose her head; the tears ceasing their creation in her eyes. "Encephalon Dive?" she repeated with a dry voice, feeling a piece of hope bubbling up from the bottom of her heart. Dmitri nodded, causing Faith's eyes to widen as the hope took a sudden jolt. "So my baby is still going to be alive…?"

"Yes," he told her with a monotone voice. "You're giving yourself this form because-" he was unable to finish his sentence before the full form of an overjoyed Faith had slammed so hard into him that he fell back onto the thick grass almost painfully. She had wrapped her arms firmly around his muscular figure; her face dug deeply into his neck so that he could feel the dampness of her face against his skin. Awkwardly, he raised his arms, unsure of whether to comfort her or not. Despite the fact he almost despised the girl (anything that would make his son happy, unfortunately, made him the opposite), he found himself slightly torn from spending so much time watching her; feeling Gaignun's own want to protect her that a part of his own personality had become stained from his love. Eventually, he settled his arms upon her figure, which was clad in just a simple dress along with the black and white stripped jumper she had been wearing all day.

The relief she had felt prevented her from even realising her actions against her father in law that she knew held a sharp dislike to her. Just as she was about to ask him a question regarding Gaignun, he spoke first in a slightly rude manner though it caused embarrassment to fall throughout her; "Get off me, Faith."

"S-Sorry," she whispered dizzily, pulling herself from him. Steadily, she settled back onto the grass, watching him with careful eyes as he re-adjusted his own position to sit back opposite her. Eventually, she plucked up the courage to say; "You fucking threatened me with a knife." Even though she felt happy that her child had really not been harmed, this was her time to be the strong person. And for once she felt like her true self; the girl that would stand up to cruel people; who wouldn't allow anyone to even attempt to walk over her.

"You brought the item out first," he counted casually to her.

She clicked her tongue with disgust. "Because you were going to hurt me."

"You were in the way," he told her, causing her lips to part but in an interested smile.

"Oh?" she asked huskily, tilting her head to the side in a curious manner like a child. She was actually excited to grab her own answers from the man; so excited she failed to remember that he mentioned in Encephalon dive; or there was so much going on that her emotions were a down right mess. "What about now, hm? Am I in the way? Will you hurt me, dad?"

"Don't call me that," he told her sharply, with anger seeping on his face though his voice stayed as calm as possible. It was actual nice to come face-to-face with one of her new enemies; at least this way she could punch him without Gaignun feeling the pain and – wow – she did want to sock him right in the jaw.

Quickly, she spoke again; not allowing him to reply to her questions. "Why? Does the word disgust you because you're not as fatherly as you should be?"

"I am no father," he told her. "And in answer to your other question; no you are not in my way. In fact, I need you perhaps just as much as you need me."

A little laugh escaped the back of her throat as she rolled her eyes. "Oh yeah, please! I really do need you," she smirked; her words he could easily read as sarcasm. "I really need a man that tries to take over my husband's body and tries to hurt me at the same time. Fuck off, Dmitri. I could kill you now, did you know?" she asked with a childish giggle.

"In reality I'm within your husband's body," he reminded her. "If you killed me here there will be a lot of complications to him as well. Would you like that?" all she could do was stay silent; feeling the confidence drift from her. Frozen in her place, Dmitri allowed a wide smile to plaster across his face; a smile that resembled the ones Albedo would give to her. "You hurt him, did you know that? When you left…Ah the pain … Wonderful… I've never felt him so saddened within his life."

"Shut up," she whispered dryly, feeling the tears come to her eyes as she realised the sheer agony he'd have been through. "God, why'd I get fucking paired up with you? Oh – and why are we in an Encephalon Dive?"

"I supposed that you'd have known," he muttered impatiently. "But that charade you pulled a few moments earlier tells me otherwise."

"Charade?" she repeated with a smug smirk. "Yeah, my thought of losing my baby is a charade."

"You've obviously not accept it yet," he told her sternly. "If your figure in the dive is one without you pregnant you're not accepting it," for a moment he paused, taking in her looks before giving a small smile. "Though your eyes intrigue me."

"Beg pardon?" she asked with a light whisper.  
"Your eyes," he replied calmly. "They're the shade of brown while your hair is plain pink. I recall your eyes being blue and gold."

"You remember things well," she muttered, before pushing herself up to her feet. "We have to find Gaignun. Is anyone else here?"

He mused on the answer for a little while before replying with; "Chaos, Gabriel and Emma."

"W-What?" she asked, shock blanketing her voice. "Lock and Gabriel?"

"Mm," he nodded, standing to his own feet; his height not even intimidating her as she expected it to have done. "You phoned Gaignun while he was in Emma's apartment, with Gabriel there. Just yesterday he got back into contact with chaos and the pair of them went to find you. I do not remember much of what happened after that, but I do believe all of us are here. By the way…" he muttered a little quietly, as if his words were hard to hear. "You and Gaignun…On your Saturday nights…Nice. They're nice."

A tut escaped her lips as anger washed over her; "Oh please. Saturday nights are the only time for us to actually be intimate. If that's what you're thinking about-"

"Not at all," he told her. "Personally, I prefer your weekday sex," a shot of disgust ran through her in the form of a shiver, and the urge to punch him came to her again. "But no. I meant I enjoy watching you two on Saturday. As much as I despise you both, it is rather … suitable. You two are a good couple. It's only a shame that you're both who you are."

A firm glare edged its way onto her face before she folded her arms, leaned forward and literally spat; "_Thanks_," in a spiteful way. "I take it we have to find Gaignun in this hell hole," she hissed, looking from left to right in the miserable world that had been created somewhere in the back of her mind. If anything, she thought her own domain would be the beach with a beautiful lighthouse; her true happy place, rather than an overgrown wood with a few cliffs and a decayed building.

A little laugh escaped the back of Dmitri's thought; a mocking one if anything; "Suits you. Overgrown weeds; nothing beautiful."

"Hell!" she hissed hard, turning away from him and beginning to walk down the pathway. "Why the fuck did I get paired up with _you_? I'd rather Gabriel had found me first."

"Polite words," he muttered to himself as he followed her a few feet behind. "Why my son married such dirt I'll never know."

"Neither will I," she told him lightly, yet her voice was so soft; so fragile that he failed to hear it. It was going to be a long, long day.


	47. The Shortest Distance Between Two Points

**{** the shortest distance between two points

is the line from me to you x **}**

**{ c o m m e n t s ! ! ; ; **This is a pointless chapter; just to show a day in the life for Faith; normality in most parts (': It's a follow up from the scene "Too Red Lips?", where Faith's about to leave with Gaignun for a dinner party; something utterly important and follows onto the next day (: I just wanted to do something a little different for fun, just to show Faith and Gaignun's other side. They're not meant to be a "perfect" couple, but they more than enjoy one another's company. And nothing can stop that. Alright I gotta admit it is lame. And rubbish. And terrible XD Don't read if you don't want to XD It'll change in the next chapter; Faith and Gaignun's life that is. I just want to steal a few chapters to show what its like for them both x how easily things can just snap and change (: enjoy XD hopefully! theres like a...realllyyy bad scene in here near the end so ... im so gonna get flamed for this DX

_The umbrella, decorated with vintage spirals in shades of pink with a background of white, popped up in the midnight darkness; sparkling instantly from the fat droplets of water that fell from the starry night upon the Foundation. It swayed a little as the clumsy girl, Faith Ackermann, held onto it with both of her tiny hands that resembled nothing more than ones that belonged to a child as they clung onto the white pole. Her lips, which were painted a bright shade of red (a shade she had been worried about before, but had such fun kissing those close to her on the cheek with), pursed together as the hand belonging to her fiancé fell from touching her side, decorated in the white dress. Her tights, which were indeed covered in pictures of swans as she explained to both of the brothers (who at that time as she walked down the street were both at her side – Gaignun to the left while Rubedo at her right) throughout the night, were dark from the rain that seemed to never end; sticking to her like glue uncomfortably. The tips of her toes were damp from her having jumped within puddles just as they exited the restaurant late in the night, though Gaignun wasn't embarrassed by her childish behaviour; he only laughed and moaned when she got him with the splashes. It had been a good evening from start to finish; even before they arrived she had withered in pure physical pleasure, while when she arrived at to the dinner with her fiancé, as the joint main guest (that __**amazed**__ her!), she was emotionally uplifted; floating with happiness as she joined in conversations with other people, who were stunned by her sentences; her passion and her love for life itself. Often she had heard someone whisper (whisper not so well, mind you) into Gaignun's ear of how lucky he was, causing little jolts of happiness to burst throughout her. All the worrying had been absolutely for nothing, and she was finding herself settling into Gaignun's lifestyle quite happily. Even if she was happy or not she'd have settled; she'd have lived any way possible just to live and breathe with him. He was her everything._

"_Fay, put the umbrella down," Gaignun told her with his typically plain voice, yet she could see the beauty behind it; feel the lovely emotions emitting from his skin. Though, despite the loveliness, she found herself looking up to the man more than eight inches higher than her; noticing the rainwater sliding off the points of her umbrella like it were a fountain. Gaignun had his own, settled in his left hand so that he could still touch her with his right; a black umbrella of course, only to match his cashmere suit and it was of higher quality; less likely to break unlike hers. Rubedo had one too, but he'd already broken it but seemed quite content with getting himself wet as they walked home._

"_I'm holding it properly," she whined playfully, though she understood every motive behind his words. "Look, I'm already wet and I don't want to get any wetter!"_

_From her right, the little supposed child gave a clean cut grin, though the couple that was on the brink of bickering failed to notice. The little points of Rubedo's fangs pushed down into his lip slyly, before he allowed his voice to be heard, preventing Gaignun from speaking; "I'm sure Gaignun would be quite happy to get you wetter," he couldn't help but laugh, causing Faith to give a little giggle while Gaignun's eyes widened._

"_Don't be so sure, Jr.," she smiled quite innocently, turning around to her soon to be brother in law; "We already had sex before we came out," and those words caused the eyes of Gaignun to widen as embarrassment mixed with shock overcame him. His lips parted to speak, but just as he tried to Faith had bent to her side to pat Rubedo on his shoulder; meaning her right hand left the umbrella's pole; leaving it to be supported by her more than clumsy left hand. The moment that she moved, her hand just inches from Rubedo, a pain mixed with the wetness of the rain started from the temple of Gaignun's head; shooting around his face in quick jolts._

"_Faith!" he couldn't help but yell, before giving out a small 'ow' as the umbrella had collided with him. Instantly, she stopped walking; turning to her injured fiancé, but of course having forgotten about the umbrella in her palm, which then smacked onto Rubedo's own head. "Give me that!" Gaignun shouted the moment he heard his brother cry from pain; Gaignun's voice echoing down the street, yet instead of being as monotone as ever, there was happiness to it. She pulled the umbrella from his reach, taking a few more steps back; the rain drops attacking her unprotected body._

"_Nah-uh!" she yelled back, giving a little show of her tongue to Gaignun as Rubedo rubbed his sore head. Every time she held an umbrella in her hands someone ended up getting injured; poked in the head, in the eye or even have their hair pulled out if she caught it on the silver ends that were like spiders legs. "I didn't do it, the umbrella did!"_

"_Exactly, so give it here," he argued with her; his eyes bouncing with glee as he took a step foreword; a simple press of a button closing his own so he could take hers easier._

_Quickly, she held the umbrella in front of her like it were a weapon and gave a little laugh; "Stay back! I have an umbrella!" his laughter drifted through the Foundation's empty street, flowing over the waves of the ocean crashing against one another from the strength of the moon, and sending the most beautiful waves of happiness throughout the heart of Faith. She loved it when he laughed; when he smiled and showed his beautiful emotions, especially when he did it outdoors or in front of eyes that were not hers or Rubedo's. Usually he kept his emotions in a little box, unravelling that when he was in his office and she was there, or just at home or maybe in the car, but rarely, very rarely, in company. Despite his little emotions, she loved him even more; how he could hold such beauty within himself. She had known this since she had met him; it took awhile for him to open up with her, but she knew what was inside; pretty smiles that were as fragile and precious as gemstones. She loved how he smiled. Never ever. And smiled all the time only with her. It made her feel more; something he trusted well; someone he loved._

"_I'm only going to hold it for you," he told her with a loving smile while his back was to Rubedo, who was shaking the water out of his hair only for it to come back in a pointless manner._

_A little playful tut escaped her mouth; "You should have done that before. Like a proper gentleman!"_

"_I had done," he told her as the smile remained. "I held mine above you; you were the one who ran off into the puddles."_

_Without knowing what to say, she stuck her pink tongue out at him; the droplets of water touching her already damp organ. He put a hand on his hip; the wet suit feeling weird against his fingers and copied her exact movement, causing her to giggle cutely. "Child! Whatever would you do if me and Rubedo took a photo of you like that and sent it to all of the people that work for you?"_

"_Oh!" Rubedo quickly piped in; interested in the conversation suddenly; his crystal gems glowing with excitement; "Could we? Oh come on that sounds like fun – no offence Gaignun," he quickly added, not wanting a punch from his brother. "Do you have your camera, Faith?"_

"_No," she replied regretfully as Gaignun's tongue returned to his mouth. "I lent it to chaos."_

"_Ah…" Rubedo gave a little smirk, enjoying something in his mind before speaking again; "I thought it was weird he was carrying a pink camera with a cat keychain."_

"_What?" she laughed happily; "Thought he was trying out how to be a woman?"_

"_Yeah and he forgot about most of his accessories!" Rubedo couldn't help but laugh, causing Faith to smile wider while Gaignun just stood there, with his brows raised, as they spoke; getting drenched to the bone but neither of them seeming to care. "He'd make a cute woman."_

"_Oh he would," she agreed with a little daydream of chaos decorating himself in makeup; eyelids a shade of duck blue, of course, to match with his eyes and hair or maybe even a stunning emerald with beautiful pink lips. Oh she'd have loved if chaos was a girl! Just to save the bit of intimacy they had in their earlier years (though as time progressed …she couldn't admit to anyone, especially after how cruel she had been to chaos, that she was thankful that she had been intimate with him; it made her feel like she could rely on him if she needed to, though that was what she thought to be a weakness so never would anyone know of her secret). Plus, it would have been a tad bit nice to have another woman in the Ackermann household that didn't want to kill her senselessly._

_Just as Faith was about to dream more of a female chaos, Gaignun shot his voice through her thoughts; "We're all getting wet here. Shall we move and talk at the same time?"_

"_Oh right!" Faith quickly agreed, before holding out the umbrella for Gaignun to take; unknowingly giving up the battle before it even begun. He took the umbrella as she cutely raced to be back at his side. The lips of Gaignun curled inwards as he handed Rubedo her umbrella and opened his own; holding it with his left hand, while Rubedo held hers with his right; both of their hands closest to Faith's free. They both held their umbrella to cover themselves, along with her from the heavy downpour, before Gaignun snatched her wet hand with his surprisingly dry one, and Rubedo did the same; his palm hot like the flames that were identical shade to his hair. For a moment she bit her lip, feeling emotions erupt within her. As they walked home in the night in silence she felt not as if she were walking with a twenty-six year old and a child; she felt like she was walking with two men, both of whom that meant everything to her; protecting her, keeping her dry; her new family. And as she thought of them, her hands tightened around theirs; joy jumping through her as she seemed to realise her new life after so many months of living it. She had been accepted by two brothers, one of whom that had fallen head over heels for her while the other just loved to tease, and she had been granted a new chance to be happy. And even though she knew something was wrong with herself, she enjoyed every single moment of it._

* * *

_The next day, as Faith arrived to work, she was bouncing about with joy with Rubedo on her left. While travelling to the Durandal, and then in turn to the Elsa, they had been a laughing and giggling of their joke of chaos Rubedo made the previous night; wondering what he'd wear and stuff like that. Often Rubedo stuck his pointed nose into her past with chaos, only to get no information about a single thing, causing him to pout childishly for a moment before more sentences escaped his lips that brought laughter out the pair of them. Clad in a vintage pale pink dress that hit a few inches above her knees, which was decorated in patterns of dark pink carnations and a white belt wrapped just under her breasts, and a pair of white doll shoes, she looked as innocent as ever and just as old fashioned, yet pretty at the same time. Everything about her attire screamed "strange" everywhere she went, but she thought of it to be good; at least she was able to stand out a little more, especially with her bright red lips, which she had taken a shine to since the previous night. Her curled hair had been pulled into two buns, which she had seen on a website about old English fashion and somehow had managed to copy the style, albeit with a handful of grips and a bottle of hair spray (well, maybe not a bottle but it was more than enough). The only good thing about Gaignun waking up early was the fact she got extra time to do things, like play about with her hair. When both she and Rubedo boarded the Elsa, the first fresh face they met with was chaos; his lips curled into a polite smile as he looked to them both. Rubedo kept his emotions in check, but the moment Faith's eyes joined with those of chaos, she burst out in a fit of laughter. Rubedo couldn't help but let a little chuckle escape his lips, though chaos could only stand there utterly perplexed beyond belief._

"_Good morning, Faith…?" he almost questioned as she put a hand on her red face; the laughs not leaving her lips. All she could do was nod; agreeing that it was a good morning; a very, very, good morning. "I like your hair," he commented softly, wondering to himself silently as to what she was laughing at. Unable to bring out proper words, she muttered something in her laughter, making Rubedo smirk._

"_And that means thank you in Faith-language," he explained to chaos with a sharp wink of his eye that was faster than a heartbeat. _

_Managing to hold up her hand as the images of a breasted chaos came to her head, she stuttered out a small; "Excuse me," before stumbling away from the two boys, and heading towards the elevator, which she swiftly disappeared into._

"_What…?" chaos asked emotionlessly, though Rubedo could sense the confusion welling from his heart._

_Giving his own little shake of his hand, Rubedo swiftly shook his head. "Never mind. Look, you got Fay's camera?" he asked with bright eyes filled with almost evil plans. "Got a few shots I want to take," he explained with a little mischievous wink of his eye. A little confused expression darted over chaos' face as he nodded to his question._

"_It's in the bedroom," chaos told him. "I'd better go make sure Faith knows what she's doing for the day and I'll go get it for you," he promised, unable to speak Faith's simple nickname of 'Fay'; something about it seemed so strange to him; perhaps that strangeness only came from the idea that it was Gaignun's nickname or not. Whatever it was he didn't dwell on it._

"_You know, like those anime girls? And bright eyes – see, he's got big eyes anyway!" Faith laughed, explaining her and Rubedo's story to the Assistant Scott down the floor before with the Droid's listening in, though she doubted they'd say anything. She was seated upon one of the desks, her hands helping with her balance; the small fingers flat against the blue metal. Her feet dangled happily over the edge of the desk; the chair at another table to prevent getting in her way. Her little shoes were slipping from her bare feet, yet she couldn't care less for them; instead she felt quite calm in the room with the man who she found to be one of the smartest people she had met in her life, close to chaos (who she had to admit was the smartest man in the world though it was a little unfair he was that considering what he was). _

"_I can just imagine it, Fay," he laughed, while typing something into the computer. "Sounds like you and Jr. had fun last night then."_

"_Oh yeah!" she nodded with a laugh, before hearing footsteps entering the room they were in. Quickly, she sealed her lips; looking over to the person who was the star of her laughing for the past twenty-four hours (though she did feel rather bad for teasing him behind his back so). She smiled brightly at the boy she had known for so long, causing him to smile back at her; his eyes as soft as silk. "Got a job for me, Sir?" she asked playfully, feeling a little bit of excitement grow throughout her. She loved working onboard the Elsa, even on quiet days such as these where they didn't travel to Second Miltia or to anywhere else; the days where they'd take time to fix things or do bits and pieces they otherwise couldn't. Sweet days they were; days that held a peace about them Faith couldn't quite pick up on but the lack of stress and structure was lovely. And she was helping them too, which was another good side. Gaignun had told her she needn't work; that she could go back to college if she wanted to and do her school exams, which she had failed to even start due to her abrupt changing into a Realian at the age of seventeen. She had been so close, and even taken three of her finals but they meant nothing; absolutely nothing to the girl who was slowly losing her mind along with her life. But she didn't want to go back to college, or even to school; she wanted to work; to get through life that way. And she loved working. Especially onboard the Elsa with people she knew so well._

"_Got a job," he smiled at her softly. Her lungs were tickling from the thoughts Rubedo had implanted into her, yet somehow (goodness knew how) she was keeping herself in check. "We need you to do the paperwork this morning, if you don't mind."_

_A large whine escaped the back of her throat as she kicked her legs up in the air, unaware such a movement allowed chaos to see the female boxers she wore; decorated with apples and all sorts of fruit with smiles on them; an image he'd never remove from his brain. Ever. Despite the fact he'd seen more. Or less; however it was supposed to be looked at. "I'm doing well in the kitchens, though. I'm being trained and everything."_

"_We're not eating onboard here today, Faith," he told her delicately. "I'm sorry, but that's the only thing I can find for you to do at the moment. Count yourself lucky that you're not cleaning like the Droids that cook for us are."_

_A little 'humph' came from the back of her throat before she hopped off the desk, moving over to him. "And what are you doing today, Cinderella?" she heard a little chuckle of Scott, despite the fact she thought he'd be so far into his work that he failed to hear her. When he gave a little laugh, her face began to break; a smile cracking through as her lungs begged for her to laugh, but chaos, unaware of such things, only ignored the new nickname and spoke as calmly as usual._

"_Working with you," he told her with a little smile, which caused her heart to skip a beat as she realised how those thoughts would have to disappear as soon as possible. Damn that Rubedo! He soiled her mind; destroyed it and made it want to fall into fits of laughter all the time._

"_Alright then, captain!" she smiled, before taking a hold of chaos' wrist with her cold hand. Quickly, she turned to Scott and waved; "Toodles! Have a lovely day." Her voice was filled with joy that could spread into everyone's heart; chaos' included even though she wasn't even speaking to him._

"_Take care, Fay," he replied to her, with a quick wave of his own hand without even looking from the flashing computer screen, covered in numbers that Faith wished she could understand. And with that, she dragged who she called her 'day partner' out, and into the female quarters where they sat at the table, tons of papers having covered it, and got to work._

* * *

"_Are you having lunch with me and Gaignun?" the sweet voice of Faith broke the silence at exactly eleven in the morning as she wrote down the last word on the piece of paper. Documents were always dumped on her; even with Gaignun, and she could just imagine the hell chaos had to go through when she wasn't there as he could write, while everyone else onboard could not (well, save for Faith of course). Writing was a rarity; as rare as reading actual books, despite the fact things were far more organised when wrote rather then inputted into a computer. The world Faith hadn't been brought up in confused her, and often she questioned whether she had been placed in the right era or not, but then remembered Gaignun and the question was answered with a swift yes, which was what she sort of hoped chaos would answer her with. It had been awhile since they hung out together since she learnt the majority of the Foundation's government were after her. She had invited him to the dinner the previous night, though he had declined her offer, oddly enough. _

_When the question entered his ears, he lifted his head from his own work; a few pieces of hair having fallen foreword to cover his face. A little laugh escaped her lips as she reached foreword with her hand holding the black pen to brush them away, though thankfully chaos made no physical movement to show he was emotionally moved by her touch (that always unnerved her). "Lunch?" he repeated softly._

"_Yep!" she nodded with a wide smile. "We're going into the Foundation. I forgot what the restaurant is called but they do beautiful food. You like fish don't you?"_

"_Yes," he replied cautiously, before writing something down on the sheet of paper._

"_Good!" she smiled with her eyes brightening. "Then you're coming."_

"_Honestly, Faith," he began; "I wouldn't wish to impose. I'm sure Gaignun's looking foreword to eating with just you."_

_A little sad expression came over her, before she let out a long, disappointed sigh. "Alright then…sorry I asked…"_

_Moments of silence passed between them, before Faith could feel something soft against her flesh; warmth of a material, yet strength of sorts. Turning her head to her left, she looked down to his gloved hand settled upon her left one, which was placed upon a pile of already done pieces of work. Gently, his fingers soothed over her flesh, while his eyes stayed upon his own work. She didn't know how long they stayed like that, but when she got up to meet with Gaignun for lunch, her hand almost ached from the material rubbing on her for so long._

* * *

_Gaignun tried to never be late; never, ever, at least not for her; never for her. In the years he had been working at the Foundation as the chairman he'd received an ample amount of experience to not be late in every circumstance thrown at him; if anything he'd need to be early, so the people would come to him; that was how he had been trained almost if trained was the correct word to use. He'd not been late once, but that day when he looked at the watch hidden beneath his suit coat's sleeve, a hiss of annoyance escaped the back of his throat. He was already late, without even thinking of leaving! Four minutes only, but that was four minutes too long; four minutes she had been sat at the table in their restaurant on her lonesome, waiting for him to arrive. Already he felt the guilt as he quickly saved the work on the computer screen. Just as he stood up and walked to the door, a buzz rung from his phone, followed by a vibrating sensation against his chest; the phone seated in his breast pocket of his white dress shirt. Taking the phone out with his left hand, he pushed the button with his right for the door to open, before quickly walking out of the room the moment he was able to. As he walked down the corridor in such a hurried fashion that no one even dared to stop and waste his time with a quick 'How-do-you-do?', he eyes lowered to the phone in his hands; reading over the message Faith had sent to him._

'_You're late, dinlah,' the message read, though he was still bewildered with the word 'dinlah' and its meaning. Once he asked her what it had meant, which she replied with a simple 'Look in the mirror and you'll see' along with a shot of her tongue, but he paid her back with an attack of agonising tickles (agonising to her – joyful to him)._

_It didn't take him long, but too long for him, before he was at the Docking Station within the Durandal; the sight of Rubedo's bright red hair in his vision though he paid no attention to his brother, not even when he yelled out to him, and headed for a ride to the Foundation._

_Faith was impatient. She couldn't help it. Plus she was starving. Hell she could feel her stomach eating itself up, so the moment she sat down at the table without him being there in the restaurant that looked as if it was a boat with netting and anchors and all sorts of shells along the blue and white walls, she ordered her lunch; a tray of beautiful sushi with wasabi and soy sauce (which always came out in a bowl the shape of a fish to her joy). She knew he'd be late anyway. She'd learnt that if he wasn't there before her then she'd be stuck for awhile on her own, striking conversation with the waiters who always seemed rather interested in her. Giving out a little sigh, she typed into her phone once more; waiting for his arrival._

_"I know something you don't know!" a familiar voice teased from behind Faith, causing her to smirk._

_"And what's that?" she asked as the girl she knew so well sat down; Lock; pretty Lock with her school books tucked underneath her arm. "How you found me?"_

_"Nah!" she laughed gently. "You know I stalk you and those sexy hips of yours," she gave a little wink, before reaching for a piece of sushi. "God, look at you! All grown up and waiting to have lunch with your fiancé. I wish I was like you, Fay Fay."_

_"One day," she smiled softly at her friend. "I wish I was like you," she told her with another smile. "College would have been lovely to go to. Wait, if you're at college what are you doing at the Foundation?"_

_"Skipped some lessons - I'm here with Henri!" she laughed. "Come to college! __I could be your tutor!"_

_"I'm twenty years old," Faith smirked. "Going to college four years late seems a bit odd to me."_

_"I keep forgetting you're twenty," Lock smiled. "Fuck, you look younger than me! Though I suppose it's good you're not younger considering Master Gaignun's what? Near his forties or something?"_

_A large gasp escaped the back of Faith's throat before she began to laugh. "Near his what? Forties? You gotta be kidding me!"_

_"Well, that's what the magazines say," Lock told her. "And the internet. Why? How old is he really?"_

_"He's only twenty-six," she told him. "His birthday was last month. God, get with the times," she said, before playfully flicking her friend._

_"So he was fourteen when he had Little Master?" Lock gasped, causing Faith to suddenly catch on; the old age was part of the backup. Fuck… "And he's a chairman already? Man he's a proper pimp!"_

_"He's been with less women then even you have," Faith told her, remembering about her best friend telling her of the woman she slept with the one time._

_"Ahh," she smirked lightly. "Oh – talking of partners – that guy you work with," she leaned back in the chair, pretending to melt as he thought of her. "Oh fuck me, he's fit. Get me a date?" she asked her before quickly sitting up in excitement. "Please, Fay Fay, please!"_

_"Who are you talking about?"_

_"The white headed handsome one," Lock couldn't help but purr._

_"His name is chaos," Faith began to tell her friend almost painfully; a cobweb falling over her heart; "He's…he likes someone."_  
_"Is he with them?" she asked, causing Faith to shake her head. "Alright, then let me? Please?"_

_"No," she replied in a tone firmer than she wanted; since when did she care for him anyway? "He likes the girl a lot."_

_"Does she like him back?" Lock asked with a little playful smile._

_"Yes," she replied before quickly opening her eyes as fear transcended over her. "Fuck, I mean, no, no!" She almost yelled, feeling her heart racing beneath her chest._

* * *

_When Gaignun finally arrived, ten minutes late to the dot, Lock had scooted off with a kiss to Faith's lips in an attempt to cloud jealously in the chairman's eyes for being so late, but he made no reaction to Lock's movement, though Faith was a little bewildered. They ate together, or the little bit of food Faith had left (that was the best thing about having a friend like Lock – she'd eat anything) and Gaignun parted his lips to explain to her the Elsa's next movement to Second Miltia, which Faith would be involved in. He promised to meet with her in Second Miltia the next evening, more than a few hours after her arrival. Though she was agreeing with her words, a tad bit excited to travel back to Second Miltia, her mind was clouded with thoughts of chaos; why she had said what she did and as they day passed into evening, her body felt peculiar; like it was nothing of her own. Onboard the Elsa, with her clothes in bag and Rubedo heading to bed, she passed chaos a note, before entering the female quarters._

_Inside, she changed into her night clothes; a simple pair of boxers along with a large shirt dyed a shade of duck blue. Eventually, as time passed, she heard the door opening; chaos entering her room with an emotionless expression as always. In the darkness, she heard her voice telling him to turn the lights off; engulfing them in the shade of blue from the lamp at the table. He moved over to her in fluid movements, before sitting beside her on the bed. For a moment they stared at one another, before she planted her lips upon his. Within an instant, he kissed her back in a calm movement before sliding his gloves off, and draping them slowly over the bed until his fingers finally loosened; dropping the pair to the ground silently. His warm hands ran through her hair; the touch almost numb as she felt herself fading from her mind in a curious way. Gently, he pushed her down onto the back; her bones comforted by the sheets but trapped between the mattress and his body._

_The touch of his bare hand was more than magnificent against her flesh; his long fingers draping down against her slick neck; running finally until they found the gap between her firm breasts and slipping through like keys to a lock. Pleasure tingled through her from her chest down to the pits of her stomach, toying and playing with her organs; causing her to forget of the man she was engaged to and only allowing her to think of the hot touches chaos was placing upon her bare flesh. His fingers were cold, just like her own oddly, though his mouth against her own was as hot as a furnace; kissing and whispering words she couldn't quite understand over her lust; or they were words he couldn't speak above his own properly. The hand in her hair left its place and fell from her body before reappearing on the inside of her soft, white thigh; pushing and smoothing and teasing against her aching flesh. Within one slick movement, she had moved on top of him; pushing her hips against his in agonising pleasure; the friction toying with the strings of her heart. Closing her eyes, she engulfed herself into his touches; allowing one of her hands to snake their way down to her white underwear; pushing her fingers against her magical spot happily. Once she re-opened her eyes, the touches fell from her body; the heat and wetness of chaos' mouth against her own had disappeared instantly, as well as his body._

_She was laying on her knees and elbows, still upon her sheets in the darkness, the sheets having tangled from her movements. Her arms were beneath her body; one hand tugging against her breast while the other was between her squeezing legs, shaking furiously as reality hit her in a shocking blow. A further shock engulfed her as she turned her head quickly, seeing the frame of chaos sat beside her bed upon a chair with his eyes shut; the boy having fallen asleep in the darkness. A feeling of horror flew without her as she gasped; trying to retrain her erratic breathing as quietly as possible without waking him. Quickly, she snapped her damp fingers from between her legs, bringing her other hand from her breast and turned herself onto her side; her cheeks bright red with embarrassment. "Shit….shit…" she whispered almost silently as she pushed her trembling legs from the bed; struggling to stand upon them as she brought her weight up too. Frightened, she moved to the other side of the bed, where chaos was seated peacefully; staring at him with her trembling eyes._

_"Yeshua," she whispered; watching the blue light upon the table dance along the shape of his face. When he made no movement, she took a hold of his warm arm with her cold fingers, which she realised she had been using upon herself during the 'hallucination' – if it were to be called such a thing. Carefully, she lowered her eyes to his hands that were upon his lap gently; bear from his gloves, which caused her to frown. How far had they really gotten together? She shook his arm with her weak hands, her body still not together from the actions she had performed upon herself, which she was not the slightest bit proud of. Taking a small step foreword to his sleeping figure, she reached down before planting her lips upon his. Closing her eyes softly, she parted her pink mouth; allowing her tongue to slip through the heart shaped gap to chaos' limp mouth. Her heart was pounding; her loose fingers tightening against his arm while butterflies emerged from their cocoons in her stomach; fluttering away in a seemingly endless fashion. He tasted like warm buttered toast; smelt of something soft that she couldn't quite made out; his arm feeling like silk against her fingertips. When her tongue pushed through his lips, he reacted then in a dreamful fashion; his hands twitching while his lips pushed slightly against her own. Quickly, she pulled away from him; causing his sleeping figure to become disrupted; confused from the sudden movements. Trying to break from his sleep, chaos' body moved as she lowered herself onto her knees before sinking her head deep into his lap; his slightly moving hands against her cold cheeks while her own stayed on his arm._

_In the darkness, she eventually heard him mumble her name through the thin fabric of slumber; "Faith…?" he questioned lightly, before parting his lids to open, though from where she was she hadn't a clue whether he was looking at her or not. Instead she nuzzled his thighs, trying to weave her way into the fabric of his yellow trousers. The buckles pushed against her face uncomfortably as he finally pulled his hands from the heat her closeness had locked them into but wasted no time to hide the bare limbs into her soft locks; soothing her in a way only he and Gaignun knew how to. "Sit up," he told her softly yet with confidence in his tone._

_Slowly, she raised her head; unknown that her eyes held pleasure within them still from her earlier movements that chaos picked up on yet refused to mention. With a little confused face, she looked down from his lap, across his chest and up to his soft face, which held a sight smile along the corners. He moved his hands down the sides of her hot face, going onto the top of her arms and tightening around her tiny figure. "On me," he explained softly, allowing her to move up onto her still weak knees before she sat upon his lap; each leg dangling from each of his thighs; having slipped through the gap of the arms of the chairs. __"Bad dream…?" he asked while looking down at the small woman._

_Pouting, she turned her head slightly to the side before whispering; "I don't think I'm Faith tonight," a grin flew upon her face; illuminated by the light in an almost creepy fashion; a grin like the Cheshire Puss; eerie yet comforting in a maddening world. "I barely remember the time between leaving you and today; the four years slipping from my mind. I won't remember this tomorrow," she told him with a smirk, though inside she was crumbling from a new mixture of feelings; her true emotions trying to push through whatever was blocking her mind like steel. "Why not make some fun of it, hm?" she asked with a tone that didn't belong to her at all; her eyes sparkling their dazzling shade of blue rather than gold that hung around the shade as well. "A man of God fucking the body of an engaged woman. How utterly splendid is such a thing? I bet since the death of Mary all those years ago, Faith is the only girl you've slipped your cock into," 'she' teased menacingly, causing chaos' heart to skip beats in all directions. "Rubbed the Devil from your body…Held back the human emotions; wants and physical needs. Two people of God cheating on one another while their hearts are taken by humans," quickly, she leaned in to his ear before hissing; "We are a disgrace," before her body fell limp within a split second; causing chaos' confused arms to hold tightly onto her as she fell into a dreamless slumber._

* * *

_Slowly, in a gentle manner, Faith emerged from her slumber with the lights still off in the female quarters of the Elsa, despite the blue one, which remained on during all times while sat almost prettily on the table. The sheets were wrapped loosely around her body, clad in only a shirt and underwear; just like the previous night though those memories had completely slipped from her mind; from the 'allusion' of sleeping with chaos to her conversation with him, which luckily hadn't planted her with any sort of confusion while coming out of sleep. Just as she rolled onto her back, wondering whether they had docked upon Second Miltia or not, the noise of the door sliding open pushed away all the remaining clouds of sleep; causing her to sit up quickly in the warm bed; spotting chaos entering her room through the gaps of her hair that had fallen messily across her face. Clutched in his gloved hands was a white mug, filled with hot chocolate; the scent flying through her nose as he approached with a smile upon his face._

_"Good morning," he greeted to her lightly, before turning on the lights. For a few moments she blinked hard, rubbing her eyes after some time to get used to the daylight before nodding to him._

_Just as she parted her lips to speak, a yawn escaped her mouth, causing the woman to giggle before she was finally granted the ability to greet him in return; "Morning, did you rest well?" she asked softly; the smile upon her face granting chaos with the knowledge she had no idea of what had happened the previous night. Though somewhere inside of her she knew far more than him; somewhere she'd had remember the hallucination; the only thing chaos hadn't shared with her during the night._

_"Yes, thank you," he told her, before handing her the hot chocolate. "They're serving breakfast soon. Just as soon as Jr. and Captain decide to wake up," he explained to her as she began to blow the steam from the cup before daring to take a sip. The heat burnt her lips and tongue but little did she care; the sweet taste made up for it. Carefully, he looked over her slowly decaying body before clearing his throat as his eyes travelled back up to her face that was staring down at the mug of hot chocolate curiously. "Will you be eating with us today?"_

_Faith contemplated the question as she stared at the drink, making white lines in it with the tip of her finger despite the boiling hot water. When she decided she was done, she licked the liquid from her pale finger before turning to chaos with a little smile upon her face. "Nope," was all she simply said before elegantly jumping to her feet; the hot chocolate not spilling despite her fast movement. The sheets fell from the bed, but she cared not for them. Gently, she leaned down and kissed chaos' cheek with a smile upon her face. Slowly, she pulled away from him and looked as his fantastic coloured gems; the gold sparkling within her own beautifully. "Isn't it funny…" she smirked lightly. "Talking to you is like having bi-polar disorder. Sometimes something makes me hate you but days like today I feel like a bird flying through the air; I feel like me and guess what?"_

_"What?" he asked her with the corners of his lips pulled inwards._

_"I like you," she smirked as she moved away from him; changing quite happily in front of the boy that had seen her change dozens of times. "Oh," she quickly said as she placed the mug on the table. "My friend, Lock, you know her right?" chaos nodded in answer to her question as she slipped a white bra upon her chest; clipping it into place before sliding on a grey dress that hit just above her knees; flowing out from her hips elegantly. "She's got a major crush on you! Would you go on a date with her, just to settle her?" she quickly removed the top half of her dress before grabbing a long sleeved black shirt from her bag and sliding it on. She put the dress back into place; running her hands over the patched fabrics; each patch decorated in different types of flowers but each held the same colour scheme of dark greys to a lighter version of the shade. The straps threatened to fall down her arms, but luckily the shirt underneath prevented them from doing so. "You don't need to sleep with her," she told him as she began to pull her hair back into a bun but failing dramatically. "chaos?" she whimpered, looking back at him from where she stood; hair grips and ribbon in her hands._

_Silently, he stood to his feet, moving over to her. With his fingers, he brushed through her locks that smelt of strawberries before pulling them all back gently; the movements making Faith's heart warm. "She's a nice girl. I mean, only take her for a meal," she explained as he wrapped the ribbon around her hair to hold the bun in place; something he'd only done twice but it was more than enough to know what he was doing was right. "Or a movie. She seems totally into you," he clipped the loose pieces of hair to her head with the grips, which looked like little decorations against her red locks. "Please, chaos, please?" she asked before feeling the back of her head; the style perfectly in place. "Thanks," she smirked as she turned around to him._

_"You're welcome," he replied to her gratitude, though not to her actual question. Bending over, Faith began to put on her grey boots before mentioning Lock's name once more, causing chaos to lower his eyes slightly. "I don't think I could," he paused for a moment as Faith placed her second boot upon herself. "Unless … you could do me a favour?"_

_"Oh yeah?" she asked softly, looking up at him without a strand of hair in her eyes. "What's that?"_

_"Have breakfast with us," he told her lightly; his melancholy voice surprisingly lovely to her hears though the sentence caused a jolt to run throughout her body. Quickly, she stood to her feet before moving almost defensively to the other side of the bedroom, close to the door leading to the hall of the Elsa._

_"No, no, no," she quickly replied to him; "No breakfast. Nope. None. Thanks. I'm not hungry. Really. And breakfast makes me sick-"_

_"I lived with you for a number of years," he told her informatively. "Never were you sick from eating breakfast."_

_"You know what…?" she questioned with a glare upon her face. "Why don't you just such the fuck up? That little Realian out somewhere in this world has a bmi of 17.2; no ones bothered. She's beautiful and fucking perfect and you're as skinny as a twig, and what about me? I can starve as much as I fucking want to because," she gave a little laugh; "Look at me; I'm perfectly fucking fat. Healthy. Starving feels fucking good. The fact one day I might get down to her size, get rid of these fat breasts, and be skinny is just an extra – the good feeling is when you take two little tablespoons of soup and throw the rest away. The good feeling is chucking out all the food you were meant to eat before your fiancé comes home," she gave a little laugh before moving over to the door; ready to leave chaos alone. "The dizzy spells are good. I can pretend I'm going to die if I carry on, which I cannot do anyway," quickly, she opened the door before glaring once more at chaos; "Fuck you and your trying to help. It's all fucked up anyway. Everything."_

**{** sweet dreams are made of _this  
_everybodies looking for something; some of them want to _use_ you  
some of them want to _abuse_ you; some of them want to be _abused_ **}**


	48. Belle

**{ S e c r e t s ; ; **_Part Three_ **;** "Belle" ;

**{. Comments ; ; **This is … so … not … Fanfiction anymore I ought to just stop. Plus its crap T_T I'm ill Dx And I wrote this in an hour – shows how much it'll suck, ne? Part three of Bitter Sweet now XD Hm…A lot will be wrong, wording wise and it is really Faith dedicated but the next chapter is all Gaignun & Yeshua ^.^ x

_When she was little she thought that she was in love. Little eyes, painted a shade of baby blue; something so bright yet somehow foreboding at the same time, grazed over his body every now and then; believing the man dubbed as their butler was her prince without a white horse. She adored the shade of his raven locks, often wishing to be scooped up in his firm arms to play with the soft hairs; his clean face close to her own. He was so unlike her own father, whose hair was a chocolate shade identical to her brothers and his face always left with stubble that irritated Faith when he kissed her on the cheek every night before bed (a habit he stopped before she killed him – just at the age of thirteen years; abandoning his little girl before she even hit her teenaged years, which heart broke her; tearing her into a mentally fragile state yet it was a state so small, so delicate, no one ever sensed such a thing – or didn't care). Damion was her tall prince with chiselled jaw bones, unlike the majority of the world, and such strangely coloured eyes they reminded her of the beautiful waves of the ocean; shades of greens and blues. His skin was a cold shade, identical to his hair yet always it seemed familiar; known and warm to her. He was ever so kind to her, to say the very least; teaching her lessons when the world crumbled before her in a more than perplexing manner; holding her hand as they crossed roads despite her teenage number – a young adult as she counted herself and smiling in her direction; smiling __**for**__ her. He __**listened**__. He __**cared**__. She knew he __**loved**__. The love she had been forced into with her parents was a strange type; constant words of 'I love you' falling upon one another yet they were empty words; how she believed a parental relationship should have been. Apart of her, somewhere deep down in her heart, knew the relationship between her and Damion was more of a father and daughter one, yet with such confusing emotions flying about her heart (hundreds of emotions almost if she allowed those murderous thoughts to seep over her) she thought that she loved him in a different way. A love that was shown in her storybooks and a love her few friends spoke about; boyfriend and girlfriend._

_Gabriel was kind. Before the incident. But he was sour at the same time – Damion was like a flower that never dried out to its death – pretty and beautiful and handsome in every way possible. Intertwined with the murderous things going on; the relationship between her and other characters in the house and the falling of her world were the desperate feelings she felt for Damion. Even when she was in a relationship with chaos, her mind would always reel with thoughts of Damion. Innocent ones at the start; her mind curious as to what it would feel again for his fingers to hold her hand while his lips kissed her fingers, which he had done once when she was ten years old and fallen out of a tree; her fingers the sorest. He kissed every one of her aches better, save for the open cut upon her knee that she was frightened of him touching (she could remember screaming bloody murder at him when he tried to wash it for her, only to realise the pain wasn't as bad but it still wasn't pain she could control and even at such a young age, she yearned for it). Before chaos had kissed her when she was fourteen, she held no interest in the white headed boy and even during their relationship she couldn't return words of love without feeling empty with them. When chaos touched her skin she wondered what Damion's hands would feel like; soft, as she quite imagined. His hands we always soft; tender little white pieces of silk at the ends of his sleeves. They were practically the only bit of skin, save for his neck and face, on show to the entire world yet they stayed as perfect as anything; practically spun from spiders silk and she wondered how utterly perfect he would look under his clothes; even under his skin. A man made of divineness; far more than the chaos that she knew. Far more than anyone that she knew. And he liked her. He loved her – perhaps not in the way that she understood as a child but in a way that she appreciated more than love regarding relationships, because he was, and was destined to be; her father._

_Craving his attention, she often found him reading alone or working on his laptop, while Gabriel was on the floors above; too far away to hear or even know of what they were doing. At the age of fourteen she had begun to sit with him in the silence; becoming apart of his space; watching as his muscles flexed with his slight movements and his clothes creased; watching his serene eyes, which later in life reminded her of those belonging to Gaignun. Once, while they were watching a movie late in the night, she dared to lay her head on his shoulder before she wrapped her one arm around his waist. She could feel the movement as his stomach muscles clenched before he relaxed; placing a hand upon her forearm gently yet firmly. His flesh was warm against her murderously cold skin. And he cared not for what was inside of her. No, he did care; for a little princess he treated as his own, unlike the house filled with rough hatred. And he pulled her closer with his strong arms and when she looked up into his eyes, she recalled that one memory she had for but a moment;_

_'Don't leave me alone, daddy…' and instantly tears pricked into her eyes. With that one look of his eyes, all of those feelings, thoughts, and wrong emotions seeped from her like a flash of lightening zapped it away. Troubled by the tears running down her face, Damion sat up straight; still holding her close. He questioned in the dim light of the movie what was wrong and she paused for a moment; frightened that when she parted her lips all she would do would be scream and pour all the water from her body with her eyes. Eventually, she managed to whisper to him; "You're better than my father," and his lips curled inwards gently; his eyes softening and she couldn't help but ask; "Do you love me…?"_

_His face softened more, and before he answered he reached down to peck her forehead with his lips; his voice was enveloped around her as he spoke; "I love you more than I could love any woman. I love you more than I could a wife," he smiled softly; a finger delicately on her damp face; "You're all I need in this world, because . . ." and his face was pained for a moment, causing guilt to tremor in the little girl's heart. She laid her head on his chest; sinking into the fabrics of his blazer as he held her tighter. In the darkness she heard him clear his throat, holding back his own tears, before he continued with a light whisper; "You make me who I am. You are my daughter – biologically or not. I wish for you to feel this. All of your life, even if you cannot remember tonight…"_

_And she learnt her love with him was special. Just as common yet the most unique thing in the world. Her father, Damion Blanc, was the sweetest kindest man in the entire world. And though she forgot the scene the next day, her emotions had forever changed. And he brought her up, with those coloured eyes she wished she had more than anything._

* * *

All Faith knew at that moment of time was that she was falling; deep, deep down like the little girl Alice she abruptly could remember reading in a _book_ – though how she recalled such a memory so smoothly like gliding across ice was utterly beyond her. Darkness loomed about her, yet there was a light to her darkness; a cerulean blue that reminded her much of the shade of her Damion's gems; swirling about her translucently; tickling her flesh, which she suddenly realised was covered in a simple white dress without her striped jumper Dmitri had tugged at just a few moments ago. Or hours ago. How long had she been falling, drifting in what seemed to be the thickness of the water; cradling her with bubbles passing her limbs, which reflected beautifully in shades of silver and blue against the small beams of light that danced about her? It felt almost as if she had awoken; her mind gently spinning her like silk from whatever darkness she had fallen in before. She wasn't breathing. She didn't feel the need to. It felt like she was dreaming once again; the emptiness pushing against her thighs and legs, crashing softly like waves. Though she felt like she was immersed in one of her dreams she felt awake; her mind ticking though parts of it were slower than others; still taking its own time to catch up with itself. She tried to think – for but a moment – what she had experienced before drifting into nothingness. The sounds of Dmitri's voice came her until she realised it was Gaignun's voice. His masculine scent; hot arms wrapped around her, yet though she knew these things had happened it felt as though they hadn't; they were fragments of an old dream yet it had happened. It was real. She had re-met with her husband, who she suddenly began to fiercely ache for in the darkness, causing a tear to pass over her eyelid. As it escaped the comfort of her body, it floated above her head, and finally she took a breath; softer than silk, which seemed to float into her lungs. The tear glistened up through the nothingness; sparkling in its own light, causing Faith to stare in awe with gems coloured a shade of light gold – much like her Realian ones. And just as she reached up for the tear, which had sparkled into three separate silver droplets; tendrils of black curled their way into the darkness; darker than the shades of blue and green floating about her that she believed to be darker than dark. The almost smoke like substance tickled past her skin, before curling its way around her tears floating high above her head. The lights of the droplets disappeared into the black blanket, yet she could see them glowing slightly through the darkness; like stars in a night sky. Her hand lowered to her side, through the un-wet water-like substance; her long, thin fingers spreading from her palm easily; floating to her side as she gazed at the tears. Gently, they seeped into the darkness, which was quickly engulfed by a passing spiral of blue; snatching it away instantly, and leaving her with neither tear nor darkness.

Just as Faith tried to turn her body, a voice whispered lightly through her ear, causing her brows to furrow slightly; "_You're not supposed to be here_," there was nothing threatening about the female voice, which seemed so close; so familiar to her, yet so foreign at the same time. It was soft; delicate like freshly spun silk, but almost fearful at the same time. Not supposed to be . . . _where_ . . .? The thin lips of Faith parted as she rolled her eyes; trying to search the nothingness of lights to find where the girls sentence had come from yet she was granted nothing for her sight. The world was still empty, yet whole at the same time; nothing, none existing, yet everything; all she needed; all she was yet so much more and too much with other strangers crawling through her mind. "_Who are you, Faith …?"_ there was a pause as Faith held her breath before the voice spun throughout her once more, helping to worm her mind from the dream-ish state it had lured itself into somehow through conversations with Dmitri and Gaignun she couldn't quite remember; "_Who are we…?"_

"We…?" she could only whisper in return; staring up from where she had fallen from. Trickles of light shot through the strangeness, reminding her of the light upon the Foundation's ocean waves as they crashed against one another. Was she really in the depths of an ocean, or locked in her imagination or a trap devised by whoever had slipped her and her friends into the Encephalon? Where was Gaignun …? Dmitri, Gaignun, Dmitri; them or _**him**_. Was it one person or two? And were these questions too odd for her to think of – for surely Gaignun was just Gaignun and Dmitri Dmitri and that was it, it, it, but her mind was so dazed; so confused and away from her body that she couldn't comprehend almost anything bewildering.

And just as she began to lock her mind into sanity, another voice rung through the water of nothingness; a voice so familiar her skin tickled inside out; "Fay! Get out of the water," _Gaignun_. But instead of his name shooting through her mind the name; _Ni-Ni_ replaced it yet the replacement was so silky she didn't distinguish it as she looked up through the darkness, seeing shadows overcastting her so high up that they seemed like little dots.

"_Ni-Ni_," she whispered through her wet lips, before reaching up for the memorable shadow that was too far for her; and drifting even further away.

His laugher ran throughout her, causing her stomach to tickle as an image overcame her mind that soon came into firm reality; water spraying around a pink lace dress that she knew she wasn't wearing as she splashed throughout crashing waves; thundering against her weak thighs. The feeling of floating down through the nothingness fell from her in a fluid motion before she felt the sharp jolts of the cold water; an orange mixed with pink sunset casting over her frail figure, which seemed far weaker than her one in reality though as she crashed through the waves with a sudden surge of bliss, she lost all of her mind; focusing simply on what her heart and body were forcing her to do. The water surrounding her was crystal clear; reflecting the shimmering lights of cerise magically spiralling through the darkened sky; mixed with shocking colours of golds and oranges, which made the sunset look as if the sky had been lit with a match; casting beautiful rays of colour to spray across the horizon, while on the other half, far across the beaches and cliffs she paid no attention to, a transition to darkness was slowly overcoming the sky. The stars were already twinkling in a thin blanket of dark blue, rather than pitch black and just as beautiful as the sunset itself. The lights tickling on the edges of the waves seemed to be nothing but stars themselves in the water; competing with the sky to grab vain attention. The air was chill, curling around her little figure; brushing around bare skin of her dark arms and cold, wet legs. But she didn't care; so enveloped in her reality. Nor did she care for the beauty about her; only the cold, wet waves playing with her. As she splashed against the waves, curls of blonde hair falling behind her head, she failed to notice the voice drifting through her mind gracefully;

'_This is who we were, Faith Kukai…I'll share my memories with you – just as you have shared with me.'_

Her tiny hands, which were far more tanned than usual, shot through the waves; scooping up the water, though hundreds of salty droplets splashed back to their place to be moved by the moon that had already shown itself in the multi-shaded sky; threatening to be hidden by the suns weak rays. Just as she raised her head; damp locks covering her forehead, she froze as her eyes met with the body of her husband. The ice cold water escaped her raw fingertips; the waves brushing at the tips of her dress, stroking her gently in an act to cradle her. As sharply as the strange transition began, it folded up again, and Faith opened her eyes into what her actions were and she questions how she had found herself here, after falling in what she believed to have been the ocean she was happily playing it. Trembling furiously, she watched Gaignun's – _Nigredo's _– '_Why that name…?_' – figure yet he did not move. He was frozen in time; a smile spread across his face with his simple raven locks pushed behind his head from the water. His face looked young, almost like an older teenager with freshly shaven skin. Neither of his eyes held bags underneath him; carried the strain he held as a chairman, and his chest was bare for her eyes, while his lower half was covered in just a pair of black swimming trucks. His skin shone in the dim sunset, which provided her with some sort of warmth in the situation. But still he did not move; not even to breath. Simply, fear touched her heart as she grazed now golden eyes across the soft yellow sands of the beach, which held cliffs behind of it that she did not recognise. The trees swayed in a none-existent breeze; the flowers seemingly floating happily along while the waves continued their movement. Faith's bones trembled as she looked at the foreign beach that was somewhere locked in her mind yet she didn't feel like she was in her mind anymore. She felt out; somewhere she should have liked yet didn't in some peculiar way. She wanted him to move. She wanted him to speak to her.

Eventually, she managed to move her sweet lips on her face; "Nigredo…?" no matter how hard she tried the name Gaignun wouldn't leave her heart. Gaignun didn't exist – he was not hiding – the man in front of her, nor was he a human pretending not to be a U.R.T.V.

He was purely _**Nigredo**_.

"He cannot hear you," a voice to her side quickly whispered, yet despite the soothing tone Faith still flinched as she turned to her left sharply; disturbing the water about her. Some of it splashed on her already cold face, dampening her locks even more, yet she couldn't care a bit. Stood in the same depth of water as Faith was an older girl; woman; whose hair was a startling shade of white, and straight all the way down to the middle of her back. The end trickled in the water, yet she obviously seemed not to care; only focusing her grey – colourless – eyes on Faith. Wrapped around her body, which seemed nothing of Faith's – it was well proportions; strong and perfectly healthy – was a simple white dress Faith knew she owned somewhere in the deepest part of her wardrobe. It fell to her mid thighs; lacing curling over her placid skin from the water with skin tight sleeves touching her knuckles, which grazed the cold water. The stranger was warming to her heart almost, yet Faith kept her guard up, though strangely felt no need to. The woman, whose face was as clean as anything – as if normal human stresses hadn't even touched her, looked down into the water; gazing at her reflection and Faith found herself doing exactly the same too. And instead of her usual reflection of red and pink locks, multi-toned eyes and pale skin along with her twenty-one-year-old face she saw nothing but a child with curled locks that fell only to her chin in a shade of natural blonde. Her skin was faded, despite her tanned hands and arms and legs that sunk in the water; her face sickly looking; worse than usual. And she barely looked thirteen years old.

Unable to think, unable to do much, she could only stutter out the words; "What are you doing to me…?" directed towards the stranger, yet she couldn't bring her eyes from her reflection. What if Nigredo saw her like this…so sickly, so ill? She hoped then that he wouldn't move from his frozen state at the edge of the water; that he would stay like that forever…

As a tear rolled down the cheek of Faith, the soothing voice of the woman whispered through her mind; identical to the other voices she had heard but a few moments ago; "Sharing … my memories of you…" the water brushed against her legs; rippling around Faith as the older woman approached; far taller than the little girl she had suddenly become. A hand, as pure as anything; spun from spiders silk, reached out for Faith and she allowed the long fingers to curl around her chin; soothingly pulling her face up from the water to see into the colourless gems of the woman, who only held dismay within them, causing Faith's heart to jolt. "I wanted you to have perfection…In every aspect of every life… yet… because of me, so many people hurt you," her fingers of her other hand ran across the cold cheek of Faith, causing more tears to be created in her eyes. She knew this woman; she knew her so well, yet how or why she couldn't tell. She could barely comprehend she was seeing, experiencing, memories of a past life; she wasn't thick – this was true. Everything Yeshua had told her of reincarnation was true, but why? Why was this happening…?

Faith couldn't help but sputter out; "Where is Nigredo…?"

And the woman curled her lips inwards slightly; obviously awaiting the question. "Ascending the transition into our mind … Just as you did through the ocean waves. Here no Encephalon equipment can reach us…" and she smile again; almost proud of this fact before she continued with her silk voice and the smiling ceased as the sorrow continued; "But we don't just have humans crawling in our mind," and instantly, the hands upon Faith's face vanished as the one clutched her cold hand tightly; the other returning the white woman's side. She locked her eyes with Faith firmly; tighter than any eye contact she had ever felt in her life, and for that split second she felt whole; complete, and perfect but the sentence the stranger – no, she was no stranger; the woman was everything – spoke delicately caused a shiver to run through her; "Never stay out of my sights; if you are to die then I will too, and our friends will vanish. If I am to die you will be trapped," and she paused before whispering lighter than the breeze; "If either of us die then history will repeat itself ... And we are fighting against our history - our destiny. Understand?"

"I understand," Faith nodded; finally hearing how childish her voice sounded, yet from being so engulfed into her memory; into what had simply become reality, she felt no change; no need to feel alarmed. Memories she held on the Foundation; in Second Miltia and in the real world were just that – simple memories and she had just changed, like aged but only backwards. It shouldn't have done – the down to earth side of Faith tried to scream it to her – but it felt utterly natural; right. "Wait!" she quickly cried as the woman took a step foreword; trying to get out of the ocean. She froze instantly to Faith's words, looking down at her shorter figure; "I don't know your name."

"Espérer," she replied softly with another smile before Faith smiled back for the first time; tightening her grip on her larger hand.

Just as they began to take steps out of the water; the figure of Nigredo having disappeared from the beaches edge though in the strange situation Faith refused to question it, Faith whispered lightly; "Hope…" in response to Espérer's name, causing the woman to let a little smile curl on her face once more. Faith struggled slightly to walk out of the water she could – oddly – recall running into while Nigredo was chasing her down the beach, knowing he didn't want to get anymore wet than he was already. The ocean was where she could escape; tease the elder boy, but she only knew this stuff rather than remembered it in images and laughter and voices. Her wet dress clung to her like sticky toffee, and if that wasn't worse, when she stepped onto the sand it stuck between her bare toes with toenails painted a soft lavender shade. As she walked, she tried her best to avoid the shells; unlike the elegant Espérer who seemed not to care for simple things and instead kept her eyes sharply on their surroundings.

Only a few feet on land, a cold breeze wrapped its bony figures around Faith's tiny frame, causing her to shiver; Espérer's hand tightening around the small girls instantly. And with that little shiver, followed by a grave feeling in her heart, Faith's companion spoke lightly yet seriously at her side; "They're here…"

"Nigredo?" Faith asked in return, though she knew from the solemn voice of the white woman that Nigredo would not be their next guest, as much as she craved him to be.

The woman shook her head quickly; damp locks swaying against the material of her dress; "Mauvais ... Creatures from _his_ doing," she looked down to Faith quickly; "Wilhelm," and that simple word locked her into her mind; wondering, wondering, wondering; craving a meaning or an answer as to who or what she was talking of. Mauvais was simply evil in French, but the only thing she could think of was 'What?'.

In a split second, the child Faith was pushed behind the steady woman; her hand instantly letting go of her tiny one and in protection she raised her arm to the side; barricading Faith from what she could only just see. Crawling from the shadows of the darkened trees just coating the front of the cliffs, were two creatures; monsters as she could only call them, which reminded her much of infected U.R.T.V's in the Domain of Sakura, yet she had no U.R.T.V's in her mind, nor did she have U-DO (unless stupid Dmitri had done something to her, though she wouldn't even begin to think of what could happen rather than what was happening – her mind was far too puzzled to think of that!). They were shaped like humans; created from what seemed to be blackened fog; spiralling, puffing over and around their limbs that were raven in shade; the fog crawling around their hard flesh eerily. Faith could see no eyes within their faces; no mouth, no nose, no eyebrows or anything. Just darkness, hunched over itself yet more than frightening at the same time. The right hand of Espérer, which was not preventing Faith from moving foreword, glowed; tendrils of cerise mixed with blue light emitting from the tips of her long figures, which reminded Faith much of Yeshua. And as she raised her glowing hand into the air, a feather was created with the shades of cerise; catching Faith's eyes for but a moment as it floated freely from the rest of Espérer's powers.

"I can fight!" Faith quickly protested as she broke her gaze from the feather as it floated into the sky; reflecting shades of orange from the darkening sunset.

Espérer's voice was firm in response; "You cannot! Not in this form, Faith."

"I can too, trust me," she argued stubbornly before running from behind the protective arm of the woman. Bringing her own hand above her head, she recalled the quick flashes of emerald seeping from the palms of Nigredo's beautiful skin – that was the same shade as hers at that moment in time – before she allowed the same to happen to her own hands. But just as her first bolt of emerald energy, focused on the element of water (why or how she wouldn't question – no questions, not anymore), folded its way around the first darkened creature to step onto sand, her body fell weak beneath her. Instantly the glow subsided as her knees dropped; landing her on the soft ground, and Espérer's was back in front of her; protecting her body for all that it was worth.

And as Faith sat there – utterly useless in her old body, she couldn't help but wonder why this all seemed familiar to her. Far too familiar…

* * *

_It always took Gaignun __**forever**__ to get home, and during that forever as he travelled to their home on the outskirts of the beach in the blanket of the soothing darkness where his soul was allowed to expand into something as beautiful as the stars themselves, the mental communication link was open between him and his beloved ; allowing him to toy with her emotions as he deemed fit. Pleasures and distractions; wondrous feelings he could provide her with without having to even touch her; so far away yet deep inside of her. She was weak compared to his powers and he enjoyed her weakness in the kindest way possible; he wouldn't ever harm her, nor would he change her; he would only make her feel good either in a blatantly sexual way (though he rarely did such a thing – she was far too precious to him and though he enjoyed the intimacy it was something they needed to share in reality) or magically emotional; making her feel as if she were flying through the air. He loved to do this more than anything in the world; to make her legs feel as if they weren't even there as she sat down; causing her to giggle in reality, which floated its way over their link to tickle his heart with her joy. He could feel everything through the link that she didn't know; he could feel the heat of her flesh, or the coldness of her fingers; the pounding of her heart to the happiness she felt. In his heart he felt her tickled sensations; her smiles that carried a heated line with them of sheer joy. He could feel her sadness demolish as he allowed them to share their minds. Never had he felt so lucky to be with a woman like her; a gem as he saw her to be. On Saturday nights he gave her pleasures as he travelled home; making her heart tickle and her skin warm. Saturday nights were the best, even though he worked on Sundays it was just at home working rather than mandatory for him to go to the offices unless something serious happened. They'd order take out and settle in the back living room, which since Faith had moved in had basically been a games room. It was small; warm and peaceful with dark wine floors and walls; the darkness encasing them into one another in the homely house; allowing them to forget about their reality. For a few hours they'd have the comedy shows on in the background, before moving onto music, while they played poker; a game he had taught her. She had brought a darts board along with a foosball table that she was addicted to (and dreadfully good at – Gaignun won only once and they'd had it for months). For most of his life, he had never truly thought of either the house on Second Miltia or the Foundation to be his home, but since he had met her he knew where his home was; on the Foundation. He had been lonely before meeting Faith yet he hadn't realised it until he had met her. Something was missing from his life and that was the girl he was sat opposite of; the utterly madly insane yet wonderful girl who was munching on the Doritos she had put out earlier after they ate dinner in a white ceramic bowl. The small table they were sat at was crammed; their cards and winnings in the middle while on Faith's side was an assortment of sweets; candyfloss to jelly babies to sherbet in pastel coloured tubes of every shade that existed. For the past two weeks she hadn't drunk a single drop, but she had allowed herself a drink that night; a vodka and coke (with the sugar, which was very unlike her). She hadn't gained a single pound – seeming to have lost some beneath her pair of denim shorts and his white sleeved shirt she had slipped on. But as he was looking at his cards, he couldn't help but slightly question the reason for her sudden sugary addiction and wondered whether such a thing was healthy for her. But instead of mentioning it he allowed a rare – sly – smile to glide across his face. And he showed her his cards._

_Her hand, which had been holding a yellow jelly baby, weakly dropped to the table; "Dinlah!" she yelled with a click of her tongue before throwing her cards hard down onto the table, while Gaignun laughed proudly in the background above the music of Juli; a German band he somehow knew about (he wouldn't ask why he knew a German band of all the things). "Ugh, I hate this game."_  
_  
"Only because you're losing," Gaignun muttered as he retrieved his winnings; his pile of money far larger than her own on the table in the dimly lit room. As he finished his sentence, he took a sip of his red wine, raising his arched brows as she parted her lips. His alluringly beautiful eyes stared deep into her purple ones; watching the glow of the light dance within them before she spoke; unaware of his almost admiring gaze upon her. She seemed different and not just because of how sickly she seemed to be of late. His wife was different; something about her and he knew it wasn't a U.R.T.V instinct floating in his veins; it was a true human instinct; a true feeling from his human side that she had brought out of him. But he couldn't understand the thing different about her he was unable to put his finger upon. Every time he thought of it; every time he touched her little, delicate yet strong body, his heart fluttered and his fingers trembled…_  
_  
"That's a childish comment," she hissed as she shuffled the cards; pushing him from his thoughts and despite the harshness in her tone he knew she was doing nothing but being playful, though he found himself lucky that he was her husband rather than a stranger in a game. If he was just a stranger, he couldn't imagine the abuse she'd have been hurling at him for losing so many games in a row. "Childiish!" she toyed once more before sticking her tongue out at him. He returned her action, causing her to smirk. "Do you want to play a different game?" she asked him politely with an adorable tone to her words, causing him to look up at her._  
_  
"Like what?" he asked with a little smile; curiosity brimming from eye to eye.  
_  
_"__**Strip**__ Rock Paper Scissors," she offered with a laugh on the end of her sentence. Instantly her cheeks brightened as Gaignun casually sat back on his chair. She pushed herself to carry on though her insides were melting; burning with sheer embarrassment and though she felt as comfortable as anything with him, talking of such things make her tremble in fear. And he could feel that. "Each time you lose you gotta' take off one piece of clothing," his brows rose at this, causing her cheeks to redden even more as she took a moment to catch her breath. He crossed his arms across his chest; the corner of his lip pulled inwards as he playfully looked down to her chest to cause a little bit of nervousness to dart through her. "I-If…If you don't, you get…get bitten."_  
_"If you want to-"  
_  
_"No!" she quickly yelled in an innocent manner. "I was only messing! Oh you weren't meant to go along with me! That's so unfair," she whimpered; putting her hands on her chest; the cards pushing against his shirt. "Do you really want to play? I mean I'm really..." suddenly, she frowned as she dropped all of the panicking; her eyes grazing across the now casual looking Gaignun who had uncrossed his arms and was sitting up properly; wine in his hand; a grin on his face; "You're toying with me...aren't you?"  
_  
_"I'm so sorry," he laughed gently with genuineness to his voice but still she growled._  
_"You ass," she yelled playfully before throwing the deck of cards at him; causing them to fall to the ground once hitting his chest that was just covered in his white dress shirt.  
_  
_"One, two," he began quite calmly, causing laughter to emit from Faith's mouth as she realised what the counting would mean. As he got to three, she stood to her feet, and was running to the door that led to the hallway. "Four, five!" and with that he stood to his feet; the odd card or two landing to the floor, and just as he did she escaped to the hallway; soon to be chased by him mischievously. _

_Laughter echoed through the dark hallway; lit only by a small lamp near the door, causing Faith to feel as if she were stumbling through the darkness and away from Gaignun's suddenly frightening exterior. Just as she got to the steps, she grabbed a hold of the banister, and pulled all her weight upon the oak. Using the wood, she twisted her body; her socked feet spinning in a forty-degree angle so she would face the steps without anymore footsteps. With him on her tail, she jumped onto the stairs; her breaths coming into fast pants as she ran up them; into the darkness. "Y'know the great thing about living here alone with no one for miles?" she laughed as he joined her on the stairs; close behind. She missed the step leading onto the first floor of the house where the steps split, and turned to a sharp right; up even more. Her right hand gripped the banister with her fast movements; hoping that in the dark it would save her if she were to trip and fall.  
Gaignun wasn't panting; his voice as clear as anything just like he wasn't even running at all; "Tell me," he encouraged with a smile on his face.  
"I can do this to you," and she quickly turned around on the wooden steps. Letting go of the banister she held her trembling arms out in front of herself with a wide grin upon her face. The darkness was suddenly overcome by a stunning shade of emerald mixed with violet, emitting from the palms of her hands. Immediately, Gaignun stopped his tracks as the beam of light trickled from her fingertips flawlessly. Once the energy left her fingers, she turned around sharply; giggling loudly as she raced to the top of the stairs; pushing her hands against the higher steps to get her to move faster. Behind her, Gaignun had opened his right hand; emotionlessly collecting the harmless energy that was simply light into his body. As the house was once again encased in darkness, Faith could hear Gaignun's feet on the steps just as she made her way onto the second floors landing. She escaped into their bedroom; Gaignun following her._

"_I should stop you from hanging around with Rubedo so much," he muttered to her with a smile in the darkness as he explored their bedroom with his eyes. Carefully he shut the door behind them both; "He's polluting your mind."_

"_Oh no, you wouldn't," came her voice in the darkness as a playful whimper. "I love Rubedo too much! You can't stop me."_

_He smiled, contemplating something for a moment before he said softly, albeit a bit too close to her; "I guess I should punish you so you don't turn out like him," and in the darkness, she was overcome with the most uncomfortable yet beautiful sensations ever; his hands pinching, pushing, and brushing against her sensitive sides. A scream left her throat, causing Gaignun to smile as he gently pushed her back into the bed; allowing her the comfort of lying upon the sheets as he tickled her with his fingers. She pushed against him, laughing and giggling; her sides aching but just as his hands touched her stomach; his thumb pushing down too hard in a place he didn't know anything of, a strength ran through her. Instantly, she pushed away the feelings of joy; replacing them with fear as she grabbed a hold of his wrists and whispered; "Don't touch me there," with a trembling voice. Through the faint light of the moon, he could just about see her face; uncovered by her curls, which had flown onto their pillows. His hands stopped moving, but his body slipped onto the bed; a leg on either side of her little frame. _

"_Don't touch you there?" he repeated with a frown growing upon his face. Immediately, something foreign that looked like anger ran through his gems. "Why?" his hands began to shake, causing her to pull them off her body, but he replaced their position; putting them on either side of her head; locking her between his protective frame and the bed. "Did he hurt you…?" was this why she pushed away his hands now and then in the darkness of their slumbers? "Has Dmitri hurt you, Faith?"_

"_No, I," fear clouded through her as she tried to capture it; hold onto it and pray it wouldn't be seen by his eyes but she knew it was too late. Quickly, she shook her head; "I think I'm getting fat!" she yelled in the darkness abruptly, causing a frown to appear on his face. A little pant left her throat as she realised she had saved herself from what she was trying to ignore; what would eventually make her a little larger than she was. "My stomach. I really think I'm gaining weight."_

_Through a relieved sigh, he placed his forehead on hers and laughed gently; his breath tickling her face; "You silly swan…" and he smiled handsomely at her as he began to brush down her hair; "You beautiful, beautiful, silly little swan. Don't talk such nonsense. Even if you had gained weight – which you haven't, you will always be the most beautiful woman I know," her heart began to settle as he kissed her forehead; "Silly little thing, you. Come on, sweet, do you want to play something else now?"_

**{Next ; ; Chapter ; T w o ; Relevant plumes blanches**

"_I need you to listen to me!" Nigredo screeched down her ear, causing tears to stream down Faith's face as Espérer could only stand back and watch; watch her small Faith absorb, feel, be, her old memories once more. Only then could she truly understand – truly become – the ending she and her husband needed. "This isn't funny anymore, Fay! Do you think I enjoy worrying for you every moment of every day? You're not a child anymore. You're twenty years old. Stop this nonsense and stop with this magic," and he stared at her childish figure he saw to be one of an adult, and wrapped his arms almost deathly tight around her, yet stained with love. And he too wept hard as he remembered the lights coming from her hands; lights he had seen and touched since she was just eight years old – the day he met her. "I love you so much…"_


	49. Headlock

**{Heart in A H e a d l o c k . . .}**

_You say too late to start! Got your heart in a headlock. I don't believe any of it. You say too late to start with your heart in a headlock._

_You know you're better than this._

The world was not right. And Gaignun knew it was the end of the line here in the more than bizarre field of nothingness he was in with a few companions. He wasn't even sure what to call the time of day; nighttime – twilight – dawn – dusk. When he had gazed up into the sky with curious gems, he was more than fascinated, but the girl beside him had drawn her breath and the boy her height jumped up. Rather than pitch black, it possessed shades of deep emerald, hints of yellow curling around that specific colour, and deeper blues that were barely lighter than black. It glowed magically above their heads yet held a foreboding sensation to it. The stars were bright yet without shape to them or consolations; just perfectly placed dots to mean absolutely nothing yet something somehow. But the glows of the sky fell over them; like a sheet or overlay, and the moon received just the same amount of colouring. It floated from the bottom of the horizon, half of it lost to the rest of the world, in a dull shade thanks to the colours, and took up a huge portion of the sky; so close the craters could clearly be seen. But what was most peculiar of such a sky was the rippling affect overlaid on it; as if it were a reflection through the waters. Nothing stayed still thanks to the flickering of the watered effect, but nothing moved at the same time too. Clouds that were fluffy, dark and drab shades of green, hadn't moved from their resting place thanks to the deep eyes of the youngest member of the group who had fallen onto her back to view the amazing sky. Everything had frozen in spot, which drew shivers from the man's back. Ahead, to the left and right and behind of them were nothing but endless plains. The grass moved in a nonexistent breeze, and sparkled with the light of the sky as its lights rippled against it like a reflection. Around some of the trees flowers had been planted, and the tree a few feet from where the group were held a small tree house yet the wood was cracked and decaying and there wasn't a ladder; preventing their exploration. Around the tree were a few bright blue carnations; a colour like Rubedo's eyes yet eerily jumping out from the scene of dark shades and random specks of pure white. Despite the vast area they felt locked in a box; away from humanity. And the feeling was like a thick fog in their hearts; preventing them from speaking for quite some time.

They had awoken together after meeting within Lock's apartment lying on the damp grass over half an hour ago, if time even existed in their new world. Few words passed their lips as they checked one another over; Lock unable to face any of the members of the group for some bizarre reason, but her closeness to Faith caused Gaignun to stand with her as she sat on the ground; staring at the world about them as if she had given up all hope. He had awoken groggily; having a dream of seeing Faith somewhere strange where weeds were overgrown and his father held her hand tightly with a feral grin upon his face. He had lost her when the world had turned into one of the Foundation's beach and she had been sucked under the water by a white human hand. But he pushed away the stupid nightmare when he awoke; focusing on reality at hand – whatever that was. He didn't bother to look for her. He knew she was not there. He knew where they were even, but before his voice was allowed to state such a thing, the white headed boy who had caused the majority of the events that had befallen them (Gaignun still held distaste for him allowing her to walk away) spoke clearly and calmly while he looked at the flowers growing near the tree.

He began calmly, with a voice that trailed through the emptiness around them before becoming apart of it; "I believe that we are in an Encephalon Dive," he told them calmly, causing Rubedo's brows to furrow as he removed his red jacket. "Though whose mind I do not know…"

"Fay," Gaignun quickly informed him, causing Rubedo's eyes to shoot to him. When he removed his jacket, just in his jumper, he moved over to Gaignun and Lock, who had pushed herself to sit up yet she still stared ahead. Her dry lips were pursed together, and her body trembled. She wore but a pair of denim shorts, and a short sleeved shirt that flowed around her waist in a waterfall cut. She had removed her shoes to let her toes curl in the cool dampness of the grass and her hair was pulled back from her face. She looked weaker than she did in reality; different somehow and the U.R.T.V's picked up on such a thing. Or weren't engulfed in their surroundings so much as chaos was. "This is her mind."

In the background, Rubedo draped his jacket over the small girl who was just an inch higher than him, despite her age. He treated her like his sister-in-law and smiled softly as she looked up at him yet emotionlessly. "Keep ya warm," he told her, yet her brows furrowed in confusion to his words as if she couldn't quite understand them. Rubedo couldn't help but frown as he looked over to Gaignun who was facing chaos.

Carefully, chaos draped his fingers over the silk petals of the flower; "How do you know this is her mind?"

Gaignun's face faltered as his breath caught in his throat. Rubedo sat beside Lock, who's face had paled some more and he placed a hand on her shoulder. Her skin, even through his thick jacket, was hot to the touch yet she was shivering like she had been though ice. As he looked her over, Gaignun answered; "Once, to prevent her having a nightmare, I entered her mind while she slept," he had been told since he was a child not to do such a thing, especially to his brothers or the workers at the Institute and guilt clambered through his voice that shook slightly in his throat. "I came to this place and I was forced to cut to the connection abruptly."

"Gaignun…" Rubedo muttered quickly, placing a hand on Lock's face as his brows curled inwards.

Chaos lifted his hand and put the glove back on he had removed to feel the plant, before standing up straight. He looked straight at Gaignun, and spoke softly; "Was it …the thing you felt at the home?" he seemed to fear the word 'demon'.

Quickly, Rubedo turned his head to Gaignun; "Gaignun!" he yelled, causing him to look straight down at him calmly. He raised his brow and couldn't say a word before Rubedo spoke; "There's something wrong with Lock." And with that, the two of them gave her their full attention. Gaignun took a step in front of her and crouched down onto his knees, looking her in her eyes. Though he blocked her view, she continued to stare ahead.

Firmly, he took a hold of her chin so she would look directly into his eyes. Immediately he knew this was not Faith's friend; something had changed within her during their transition into the Encephalon Dive. "Emma," he spoke firmly, unsure of how to get her out of what he could only describe as a daze. The light in her eyes began to dim as he repeated her name once more.

"Her mind cannot handle the dive," chaos spoke carefully; lightly as he moved behind them all with sorrowful gems. Rubedo frowned deeply, grabbing his friends shoulder as he shook her softly to try and awaken her. "She must have gone into shock while progressing here…"

Rubedo shook his head; "But that sorta thing is picked up on!" he denied quickly as he looked up to chaos and then to Gaignun with panicked eyes; "Isn't it?" and his brother nodded as he let go of Lock's chin. Her head weakly fell as her hands loosened in her lap. She was about to fall backwards, yet Rubedo grabbed a hold of her quickly. "She's been forced into this when she can't handle it?' Rubedo angrily yelled, looking at both his brother and his friend quickly; unsure of what to do – he needed to do something to protect his sister-in-laws best friend. He couldn't let her… "Bastards!" his fist punched the ground angrily as he shook his head in sheer frustration.

"This is it," Gaignun whispered lightly as he moved his hand to clutch onto Lock's. Her flesh was cold and she did not react to his touch. He shut his eyes slowly as he let a breath escape his throat; "I'm so sorry, Emma..."

Silence engulfed them all. The grass was the only thing to move, along with the ripples of the water, and in the background petals danced along the horizon as the fake breeze began to pick up. The lights flickered some more like everything was damp, and chaos eventually sat to the left of Lock, taking her other hand. They knew little of her, just that she was a lost girl – more so than Faith. She lived with her college friends, escaped her life with a lifestyle that abused her body in many ways, yet she held something so much like Faith they could see whenever they were together. She was gentle; caring to a fault and wouldn't give up on anyone. And she would die for Faith; the girl she loved like a sister, and that was all they cared about; their friendship, which was about to get torn to shreds within her own mind. Gaignun knew that she was a performer; she had already done shows at the Foundation's Theatre and joined the Durandal with her group to keep the ship entertained. And Faith had watched every one of her shows; a talent that would soon be lost before it was found completely. They could only wait for the inevitable, which no one wished to speak; for her to drift away. Encephalon Dives were dangerous, as everyone knew, but the initial jump into another mind could spell catastrophe. No one there knew how it worked to an extent, but the merging of the minds could destroy a person. But, before the dive was complete it could be told whether someone would go into shock, thus ending their life abruptly, or whether everything would be fine. Lock's fate had been forced upon her.

The breeze picked up, and the petals danced higher along the horizon. Just as they began to swirl and dance with one another, taking a life of their own, a blood curdling gasp entered the men's ears. It sounded horrific; like a person just about drowning being brought back up for air they so desperately needed. Each hand in theirs suddenly tightened, giving pain to both Gaignun and chaos yet they did not moan for such a thing or even notice it. Their eyes widened, pushing them from their dismal states and placing hope in their hearts, along with fear from the painful gasp she had pulled. Gaignun was the first to act, swiping his hand from Lock's as the light suddenly returned to her dark gems. As she straightened her back, her body filling with life again, Rubedo held onto her shoulder; his other hand on the lower half of her back to try to keep her still.

"Emma," Gaignun's voice was firmer than before as he placed a finger and thumb again on her chin. She breathed heavily, panicking furiously, causing Gaignun to act. He shut his eyes before taking her hand once again and allowed it to grow a bright shade of green. As he ate away her feelings of panic, she settled between them, and finally her breath became whole, allowing him to pull away from her, cutting their slight link he had opened. Parting his eyes, he looked into her brown eyes; seeing something of his wife in them so faint he couldn't possibly comment on, but Gaignun knew;

She had saved her . . .

"Fay?" was the first thing she asked as a tear fell down her cheek and onto Gaignun's finger that was still touching her skin. He took his hand away and gently wiped the salted water onto his right sleeve, watching as she looked left to right. "Where did she go?" desperation was clouding her heart. Rubedo's eyes were wide as he took his hands from her body, looking to Gaignun – wanting him to look back at him so he could ask what in the world had saved her. The petals had silently ceased their movement in the background; their performance unknown by all four of them.

Chaos was the first to speak softly; "She isn't here." But Lock firmly shook her head. Her hands trembled as chaos let go, watching her carefully; watching the miracle panic in front of them. Or panic as much as she could thanks to Gaignun conditioning her emotion to keep her breathing sanely.

Lock looked to Gaignun, directly within his eyes and whispered; "She's in danger."

Gaignun stared at her for a moment, sensing the truth clouding her gems and the fear she had of her friend being in trouble. And his hands trembled. "How do you know? Did you … see something?"

Lock shook her head; "I can barely remember. She told me to be healthy because I'm being stupid," yes – Faith had saved her. "Well, she said I'm a dinlah. But …" she paused before shaking her head once more; "There was a man with her."

"Where was she?" Gaignun softly asked her; patience soothing her in his tone.

Lock frowned, trying her hardest to remember and eventually she spoke; "We weren't anywhere. But there was a man with her!"

Chaos tilted his head curiously to the side and asked; "Who was the man?" but Lock shrugged her shoulders. "Do you remember what he looked like?"

"He had black hair," Lock told her softly. "He …She's been with him beforehand. He looks like you," and she looked at Gaignun firmly, causing him to figure out who the person was; Damion.

Gaignun's heart skipped a beat as his eyes widened and Rubedo let a growl escape his throat. In anger, he stood up to his feet and stomped on the ground; "Bastard!" he yelled louder than the first time. "Goddamn that …"

"_Gaignun!"_

He stood up suddenly, turning his head to the left where her voice had come from. Instead of seeing his wife, the petals danced again in the background; growing higher in front of the moon. His hands tightened as he spun around; quickly looking over the endless dark plains yet she was out of sight; her smile not accompanying her happy voice that had danced through the darkness to tickle his heart lovingly. Or to tease it horribly. The others acted normally in the background, Rubedo calming himself as he told Lock to keep his jacket and chaos had stood back to his feet to explain to her their situation at hand and remind her of their last encounter in reality. While the petals began to dance again, strands of white light accompanied them; spinning around in figures of eights and drawing shapes with them as they floated.

Eventually, he yelled into their trapped cage that spanned on as far as the eye could see; "Faith!" which caused the others to turn to him. Lock pulled Rubedo's jacket tighter around herself as a breeze finally wrapped around their own bodies. The air was cold, but the petals danced between them, causing them to stand in awe for a few moments. Petals of blue and cerise floated around them, sparkling like everything else in the watered sky.

He wondered whether they would be trapped for eternity…

"This isn't Faith's mind…" Lock suddenly whispered as she allowed her right hand to follow a petal momentarily. Silence followed her statement, as if it were something stupid to say, but she broke it softly; "If we are meant to have our memories projected in the mind of the person we are close to, why is nothing happening?" she asked, causing sense to touch them all. "Think," she said quickly, looking up at Gaignun. "Who do you know exists yet you have no connection to them whatsoever?"

He paused for a moment before shaking his head. "I…"

"Robert," chaos quickly said, lifting his head as he did as such; "Faith's father. If he is indeed such a thing…"

Gaignun shook his head; "The man plays no part in our story."

Lock lifted her hand and placed the other on her hip as she shook her head; "Would ya say paper plays a part in a story?" she asked with a cunning tone. They shook their heads. "Exactly. You get something pointless; something no one cares about that's completely nothing and draw on it! Or … write as our matter is," she took a few steps forward; her bare skin brushing against the petals. She slipped her shoes on her feet carefully. "When it's perfectly white, what you create is flawless. And the paper means nothing; only the story on it. You can tell a story with your mouth but where's the pleasure if you can't see it or touch it? That's why books rock," and she winked at Rubedo with a knowing grin of his addiction. "Someone's gotten us some paper. And they're trying to write the story and show it to us," and she allowed the grin to become determined and her eyes glowed. She brought the hand that was close to her face in front of her, and in a small flash of light, a bow had been born into her hand. It was made of silver; coloured pink and white with the tips as sharp as daggers; reflecting the sharp light of the world about them. The air around the bow became distorted for but a moment, a few pink spirals of light coming from the weapon before disappearing as it became a full item. Rubedo's eyes had widened in amazement, while chaos had watched her carefully; knowingly almost.

Lock brought the bow to her body and placed her left hand at the center of the bottom, allowing an arrow to appear in a fainter light that they struggled to see, along with a few stray pink petals that disappeared. "No one's writing my story let alone my best friends. Let's take this Encephalon Dive and turn it into our favor," she looked over at Rubedo; "You in?"

Rubedo grinned like the Cheshire Cat before pulling his guns from his holster. He spun them around his fingers before nodding firmly; "Hell yeah," and he looked over to Gaignun; "You too. No looking so glum," and he moved over to him before sticking out his tongue playfully. "You're meant to be the hero. You know what they say about him right?" Rubedo asked him with a grin, but Gaignun didn't answer. "He never dies. And neither does his girl."

A smile grew on Lock's face before she turned to chaos quickly. She put her bow down momentarily before slipping Rubedo's red coat on her, which fit almost perfectly and picked it back up. "You explain things perfectly," she told him kindly. "Could you tell me what's going on though? With Faith I mean."

Gaignun sighed softly before moving over to Lock. He placed a hand on her shoulder and told her; "That's something you'll have to ask her yourself," and he smiled softly; "I can tell you….many unfortunate things have happened to her in her past that have caught up with her. And what we fight for is her."

Lock nodded with a grin; "Guess I can fight for little Fay," she giggled. "I'll have to anyway," and she spun around to face the moon. "I want to hear all the gossip!" she laughed softly on the end of her sentence, before running off into the distance. Without hesitation, Rubedo followed her, leaving chaos and Gaignun behind.

Chaos spoke softly; "She will not make it…"

"Emma?" Gaignun asked him quickly, turning to the white headed boy.

Slowly, chaos nodded his head before lowering his eyes. "Faith…has only handed her some of her life for the time being…On the outside world Emma… Emma will be gone."

"Would Faith know?" Gaignun couldn't help but ask.

"Yes," chaos whispered. "Of course she would. But how …if this is not within her mind I cannot understand how she can do this."

"Emma is her best friend," Gaignun began slowly as they took a few steps foreword together. "The Dive could heighten their link together, allowing her to help. Allowing her a real goodbye. How did you know this?"

"I've seen it before," chaos told him before looking ahead. "A mind alive yet a body gone. When it ends her soul will have no where to return to. We cannot tell her."

Gaignun could only nod as they pressed on; watching as Lock danced in the horizon with the petals elegantly.

A treasure; a talent lost forever…

Gaignun wondered whether his wife was being cruel for doing such a thing…

* * *

Faith had long ago lost contact with the white headed girl that reminded her so much of a female version of Yeshua. She had not encountered anymore Mauvais, as they were called and inside ventured on a more 'sane' side of the Encephalon dive. But, despite the normality of the paved streets she walked, there was something eerie of her surroundings. She had not come across Dmitri again, nor Nigredo and questioned whether she had dreamt their appearances along with her unknown 'friend' – if she was to be called that. Perhaps she was all alone in the old streets, with naught but the peculiar sky flickering above her, which was identical to the one hovering above her husband's heavy head at the same moment. Her appearance had once again changed from the lack of the strange woman at her side. She looked as she did naturally; her hair to her shoulders and curled with shades of both red and pink within it and her eyes were formed of one colour only; the sharp blue. A bump was beneath her floral white dress, provoking comfort within her and brushing away her previous fears of once not having her child. Questions formed in her mind as she took a sharp turn from the streets, walking between two trees before the path under her feet faded into grass and she emerged on the madder area of the dive. For a moment she stood in awe; staring at the magnificent moon aligning the horizon, with petals dancing far off into the distance that looked like black speckles of dust. Without thought, she turned her head and rather than seeing the area she had walked from there were more endless plains. No sign of what she had seen or where she had walked.

Bringing her slightly trembling hands to her chest, she clamped them together before bringing in a lung full of air. Quickly and loudly at that, she yelled out into the distance; "Gaignun!" the need to name him Nigredo had slipped from her heart like water, and she did not notice the transition of her emotions and thoughts. Just as she took a step forward, the world engulfed itself into darkness.

Fear struck through Faith as she took a step back, hearing her boots crunching grass beneath her weight. Tightening her hands together she looked above her; trying to see yet nothing came. Around her feet, for just a few yards, the light was normal; allowing her to see the beautiful grass and blue carnations sticking out from the blades. She frowned before taking a step forward and yelling out; "Hey!" but her voice echoed and she was granted no answer. In sheer frustration, she took a few steps ahead of her before swinging her arms down as anger clouded her emotions. "I'm so sick of this!" she yelled up into the darkness and soon continuing; "It's always one problem after another and now I'm stuck! I know you're watching me!" though she hadn't any idea of who the person could be. She spun around quickly and growled loudly; "I want to live a normal life! You can stop all of this!"

She failed to notice, so full of rage, the sound of footsteps behind of her. And in the darkness of her anger came a soft voice; "Fay Fay…?"

Quickly, she spun around and what Faith faced caused her eyes to widen. Her friend – Lock – stood there; glowing in the darkness so she could see. Her face was deathly pale, with black bags beneath her eyes and she looked as if she could barely stand. The fear sunk from Faith instantly as she parted her lips slowly.

But before she could speak, Lock's soft voice took over; "I think there's something wrong with me…" and with that she dropped to the floor. Without a chance for her knees to touch the ground Faith had raced to her to catch her in her thin arms. She carefully brought her friend down onto the grass and allowed her to rest upon her body. Questioning what was wrong, Lock replied with; "I don't know…"

"She's having a bad reaction to the Encephalon…" came a voice from behind Faith. Turning her head, she felt the wish to be alone creep over her spine, but the Damion she faced felt different to her heart; it felt like him. And the soft, knowing smile he gave, proved that matter and fear left her heart. He kneeled beside Faith and looked her in the eye; "You can keep her body from pulling out her soul as it passes," Damion whispered strangely. "She can stay in the Encephalon Dive as long as you are here…But her body in reality will be gone…"

Unsure of whether Lock had heard the words or not, Faith looked down to her before smiling softly; "Don't be so stupid you dinlah," and she laughed to keep her friend calm. "Come on, I'll save your fat ass this time…"

* * *

Faith hadn't a clue how it had worked. All that happened after was a gentle white light, before Lock had disappeared in her arms, leaving the red headed girl with Damion only, who had stood up to his feet in the darkness. As she knelt there emotionlessly, with flowers tickling her bare knees, the darkness began to lift around them. A smoke-like substance drifted through the air as light came about them. While the light came, noises trickle d through their ears; sounds of water and the gentle breeze though neither of them could hear such a thing. Eventually, there was no dark and her bright eyes could see the world she had entered. They were upon a small bit of land, where butterflies hovered around the edges of grass that dropped down to a colourful abyss below Faith had yet to gaze down. The sky was covered in soft shades of baby pinks and oranges; the clouds puffed and white while the sun was nowhere to be seen. It reminded her of a sunset, yet the horizon was nonexistent in the air they seemed to hover in. She saw nothing but skies clouded in an encasing fog, which didn't settle her heart. The areas they entered were closed in; empty yet large but claustrophobic almost. She hadn't a clue how to describe such places or why they appeared in their eyes. Carefully, she crawled to the edge and gazed below. She saw nothing but more clouds spiraling down; preventing her from seeing the ground, but behind the clouds she could see water dripping down from the sky; almost like a waterfall. As the clouds and water fell deeper down, their colours changed to the emeralds and blues she could see while back on the ground just moments ago; what Gaignun could see. Unknown to her, she had come farther away from her love.

Without looking back at Damion, and with her hands deep between the blades of cool grass, Faith spoke lightly; "How did your arm grow back?" and from the power she had snatched somehow from Gaignun, she felt the confusion emitting from Damions flesh.

Stuttering softly, he asked; "What are you talking about?"

Sighing, Faith turned her head to the side yet closed her eyes; not looking at Damion. Instead she focused on the faint emotions she could feel to try and distinguish truth from fiction. "In the real world you pointed a gun to Gaignun," she heard his throat make some sort of noise but she continued to speak before he managed to create words; "You threatened me. You told me that if I were to kill you then your death would result in mine…and …" she struggled to barely think of what he had said let alone repeat it, but eventually brought her strength together; "Our babies death. As if you were the life within me. And in fear, I attacked you. And you died." With her final word, she parted her eyes and looked over to Damion.

In awe, he stared at her before taking a small step to her and spoke carefully; "I have been here for days with Gabriel. Yet I lost him a few hours ago…I…" he let out a small sigh before shaking his head; "You are not human, Faith."

"I know that," she hissed. "It's kinda obvious…"

"Yes, but…" he sighed. "Neither am I nor is Gabriel. I can … I barely have any answers myself, Faith. My memories have only been returning to me over the past few days yet I know I'm far older than I look, and I mean…Yeshua's age give or take a few years. You and Gabriel are reborn, without the need for a womb – a mother or a father –created by human emotions," he paused before whispering; "Created by faith," he couldn't help but smirk; "Things work in almost the Holy Trinity sort of manner most of the time. It sounds peculiar. But without you, your brother and myself there would be no faith in this world. And without faith your human soul will perish."

Frowning deeply, she could only shake her head; "Then why am I in this mess? Murdering people…unable to control simple emotions…"

"Everything within you has begun to conflict," Damion told her; "Because someone has messed with my mind and prevented me from remembering who I have been and who you and Gabriel are. Someone is trying to obliterate faith in the most quiet of ways."

Faith shook her head before quickly standing up to face him properly. "Do you think I believe this…this rubbish?" she couldn't help but yell. "There is no such thing as God! There is no such thing as a heaven or a hell or angels and demons!" and with those words, a shooting pain shot through her heart. Her knees collapsed bellow her, slamming her small frame onto the grass. In the background, the noise of water turned into crashing waves; threatening to overtake their conversation. Damion quickly knelt beside her, concern clouding his face.

"Someone planted an idea into your head," Damion told her as he ran his fingers through her hair. "Just something simple – that you were a monster. It could have been so many lifetimes away or just the last life you led. That thoughts grown within you until you can't even place faith in yourself and your murders could just be that; someone controlling you and telling you that you're not good – that you're a horrible human. But look at me," and she did; gazing into his eyes with her own; "I love you more than anyone in this world and I will never lie to you. If you cannot believe everything that I say, think of this…If you do not believe in yourself then you will fail and allow this person to win. Can you have that? You'll be the light, Faith, and you'll help avenge what has happened in your life. You will get back at that person who has mercilessly killed people and blamed you. Just believe in you and me. Have faith we can fix this."

"And Gaignun too…?" she whispered before Damion nodded with a grin.

"And Gaignun," he told her before holding her close. Within her arms, her strength grew again and the pain began to disperse. The noise of the water began to soften and Faith finally let out a small sigh in Damion's arms.

"How are we going to get out of this…?" she asked softly before pulling away quickly. Damion kept his hands on her shoulders as she spoke; "I met a girl! She … we got attacked by something called Mauvais and she said it was from a mans doing called Wilhelm! As soon as I met her things became off. She was off. And I didn't look like me either. I mean…My hair and whatnot. Plus! At the beginning I was with a man called Dmitri. And that's such a long story I bother to explain just yet but," she hung onto the word before stopping; "I didn't have the baby and he said it was because it was how I thought of myself and I was like 'Well that's a bit odd' so-"

"Faith," Damion quickly cut her off; "How about we do this one step forward at a time? Like we'll go find Gaignun and then catch up at what's happened?"

"But I'm confused right now!" she yelled playfully; "And he'll make the entire situation far more worse with Dmitri involved too!"

Damion couldn't do anything but sigh softly and take her little hand within his. "Come on," he told her before standing to his feet, pulling her up with him at the same time.

With his hand tightening around hers, he took her over to the edge of the rock they were stood upon, feeling her fingers trembling. He looked down to what lay below them and looked at her. Slowly he released his grip on her hand, allowing her to place it on her stomach gently. "Follow me."

As she figured out his meaning, her eyes widened. "I am not jumping down there!"

Smiling soothingly, he whispered; "Have faith," and with that his feet stepped over the edge, and he dropped through the air; plummeting down. Eyes widening, Faith clasped her hands together, feeling her heart thudding beneath her chest. Just as Damion became but a little dot below, a flash of light escaped from his body, and with that he had disappeared. Taking a step back, she looked around her area and shook her head. "This is mad!" and she tightening her hands into fists. "But I suppose I've survived worse…One…two …" her heart shivered before she quickly changed her position. She put her back to the drop and held her hands over her heart. "Three…"

Slowly, she allowed her back to drop, resisting the urge to kick her feet in the air as her weight pulled back by gravities force. Her eyes shut immediately as she felt the weight fall from her and the breeze suddenly shot through her, pushing and tugging her dress and hair. Peace engulfed her as she dropped through the air and just as she parted her eyes the light she had seen emit from Damion came from her own skin, causing her to shut them before she was blinded.

* * *

"Is it a Gnosis?" Lock's voice was curious, yet had a string of fear at the end of it as she pulled her one foot behind the other to position herself, while holding out her bow and arrow at the same time. Rubedo stood to the right of her, with his position identical yet opposite to hers; so they would fit together perfectly. His guns were pointed to the blackened creature that stumbled in front of them, which they had come across but a few moments ago. Gaignun and chaos had yet to fully catch up with the pair, and were unaware of the creature deep in their own conversation about Faith's runaway; something they had yet to discuss properly to one another.

Rubedo clipped his weapons, which felt cold in his hands, before allowing a brow to push down on his face. "No idea…" he whispered. "Better get rid of it then find out, eh?" and he quickly looked at Lock before winking and she grinned; showing her fangs to the boy before pointing her arrow just above the things head.

She pulled it back before speaking clearly; "Let's get this in one, together. Follow my lead, Jr.," and she shot the arrow into the sky, causing her arm to pull back slightly by recoil. The moment it came above the creature's head Rubedo shot both of his weapons precisely; unaffected by the recoil unlike Lock. The arrow exploded into an array of butterflies coloured yellows and cerise, before swarming around the creature. In a flash of light, the attack seeped into its darkness as a final blow but when the lighting returned to normal it seemed unaffected by such an attack. Clenching his jaw, Rubedo took a step forward to shelter Lock as best as he could without preventing her from attacking. He found her strange. She was just a normal girl yet she could perform a double attack with ease and he questioned her ether skills, along with the fact she had pulled a bow from midair along with an arrow each time she needed one. Even MOMO could not perform such an action; she had to keep her weapon physically on hand, yet this normal girl could? But that wasn't his main concern; his concern was the creature in front of them that seemed invincible.

"I don't have a good feelin' about this…" Rubedo muttered as he spun his guns around his fingers once more.

The creature pulled itself back, before energy left its chest where its heart was meant to lay. The beam was shaded deep purple, mixed with red that sparkled out like lightning. It hit Lock instantly, shattering her with pain momentarily, and causing Rubedo to gasp in slight fear. She stumbled slightly from the force entering her body before standing up straight. She stretched her arms back into their position and growled out in pain before taking her right hand from the bow. She raised it to the sky, whispering; "Hate to ask for help…" and clicked her finger and thumb against one another. A glyph of a yellow butterfly appeared in front of her body momentarily before disappearing and allowing a white light to jump through the ground and enter her body and with that, her energy restored to normal and her body healed in an instant. And Rubedo stood there, completely taken back. Like her ether was of the norm, Lock turned to Rubedo and asked; "Do you know Aura Blast?"

He looked at her, and then to the creature before nodding and quickly asked her; "Planning to do a double?" and Lock nodded her head with sheer determination on her face.

"Don't suppose the white headed kid over the knows much," she whispered, and Rubedo wanted to argue, but when he looked behind himself to see them so far away they probably couldn't see what was going on, he dared not take the chance. Lock was harder than Faith with arguments and would seemingly be quite happy to turn those sharp corners of the bow on him. "You ready?" she asked before raising her hand once more.

Rubedo nodded his head, spun his weapons and spoke clearly into the air as a faint emerald glyph appeared in front of his body in the shape of a cross, as her butterfly did the same. "Ether drive!"

She didn't speak a word as she pulled her hand sharply down, twisting her body as she did. Both of their bodies tingled as a blasts of aura shot over the creature; the energy actually gaining the attention of the two behind of them. When the ether disappeared the black thing had too and Lock smiled widely before taking a quick spin. "Alright!"

Rubedo grinned, before patting her on her back; his coat softening the pat. "Hey not too shabby for a kid."

Lock laughed before looking Rubedo over with a brow raised. "You're calling me a kid?" and she laughed loudly before allowing her bow to disappear. "Boy, I hope everything in this Dive is as easy at that thing! It's going to be a breeze saving Fay!"

Rubedo had a feeling it wouldn't be but couldn't state such a thought before Gaignun and chaos had joined up with them, curious of what had just occurred and even more-so of Lock's abilities.

**{C o m m e n t s ; **Poor Lock! Yes she has two names btw; Lock being her nickname whilst Emma is her real one, and different characters use different words – I hope it's not confusing or stupid, unlike the rest of the chapter. I know its different to what I wanted it to be, but I figured it would be best to keep Esperere's (I can't even remember how I spelt that XD) identity more secretive, so obviously cut her out for the time being. Damion's re-appearance was really crappy, along with the scene between him and Faith among the clouds. I think the only fun bit I had was Lock and Rubedo back to back and fighting and that didn't even last too long. Well, I say "too" it hardly lasted at all. My English is appalling in this. The laptop I'm using at the moment is American so I've no idea what spellings are right anymore, considering what I thought was right it keeps changing along with other things. My imagery is terrible at the moment as well. Like utterly terrible. I know I shouldn't be writing but I've had an awful day and writing this, whilst listening to Imogen Heap is helping me just to drift into a fantasy land – hence the scenery of the Encephalon Dive. I've actually forgotten a huge amount of Bitter Sweet and I can't even remember the ending I wanted for Gaignun and Faith, along with her reasoning for what she is. It is along the lines of what Damion said – the three of them being somewhat of a Holy Trinity to Faith, which is obviously everything with life (faith for Religion or simply to have faith in people), which could easily be manipulated. Faith holding human emotions and a body for that matter will be explained later of course. I've got all this wrote down but only on my computer at home and I'm not at home XD So this chapter probably screwed everything up but please don't hate it!


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